Hickenlooper, Warren, Colleagues Slam Trump Admin for Rising Health Care Costs, Affordability Crisis

Senators: "Donald Trump vowed to lower costs on day one of his presidency. But under his leadership, health care costs are spiking."

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Elizabeth Warren, along with 26 of their Democratic Senate colleagues, laid into the Trump administration for its failure to address rising health care costs for American families. In a new letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the lawmakers highlighted the health care crisis Republicans and Trump created and their refusal to work with Democrats to address it and end the government shutdown.

"Over 90 percent of American voters say it is important for Congress and the President to lower health care costs," wrote the lawmakers. "We urge the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans to join us to lower Americans' health care costs and reopen the government."

Despite Republicans' control of the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, they have shut the federal government down for 36 days - the longest shutdown in history - and refused to negotiate with Democrats to reopen the government and address the Republican-created health care crisis.

The senators explained that Trump has raised health care costs for Americans in the following ways:

• An estimated 154 million Americans with employer-sponsored health insurance will face the biggest premium increase in over a decade because of Donald Trump's policies;

• Over 24 million Americans who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will see their premiums skyrocket next year, and families receiving enhanced premium tax credits will face the largest price hike in history if the tax credits expire;

• 15 million Americans will get kicked off of their health insurance because of Trump and Congressional Republicans' budget law, and millions more with Medicaid will face new, higher out-of-pocket costs;

• 15 million Americans with $49 billion in medical debt are being denied federal relief, while 15 million more are at higher risk of accruing medical debt;

• Millions of Americans will have to pay "hundreds of dollars more in out-of-pocket costs" for ACA coverage due to the Trump administration's final Marketplace rule;

• Millions of Americans will pay more for prescription drugs due to Trump and Congressional Republicans' nearly $9 billion handout to Big Pharma.

The letter follows Hickenlooper's consistent efforts to pressure Republicans to help lower costs for working families.

Full text of the letter is available HERE and below:

Dear Secretary Kennedy,

We write regarding your failures to address the health care affordability crisis that is unfolding across the country and the Trump administration's refusal to join Democrats in lowering health care costs and reopening the government.

Donald Trump vowed to lower costs on day one of his presidency. But under his leadership, health care costs are spiking.

1. Over 154 million estimated Americans with employer-sponsored health insurance will face the biggest premium increase in over a decade because of Donald Trump's policies. These premium increases - combined with increases in copays and deductibles - are driven in part by Trump's broad tariffs, which are affecting the cost of prescription drugs and health care equipment and supplies. New rules from the Trump administration allow employer-sponsored plans to charge higher out-of-pocket costs and projected spikes in uncompensated care, which will ultimately be borne by insurers and health care providers - and passed on to consumers - also pushing premiums to record heights.

1. Over 24 million Americans who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will see their premiums skyrocket next year, and families receiving enhanced premium tax credits will face the largest price hike in history if the tax credits expire. Premiums for ACA Marketplace plans are rising by over 25 percent, on average, in 2026. This is the "largest rate change insurers have requested since 2018." By allowing the ACA's enhanced premium tax credits to expire at the end of the year, Trump and Congressional Republicans will cause average premium payments to jump by more than $1,000 for around 22 million Americans.

1. 15 million Americans will get kicked off of their health insurance because of Trump's and Congressional Republicans' budget law, and millions more with Medicaid will face new, higher out-of-pocket costs. The budget law makes massive cuts to Medicaid and the ACA, ripping health insurance away from 15 million Americans over the next decade. Those that lose coverage will receive less preventative care and instead rely more heavily on emergency departments for costlier care when symptoms worsen. Combined with the resulting uncompensated care that hospitals will be forced to absorb, this will drive up costs for everyone across the entire health care system. Even for those who can keep their coverage, the law requires Medicaid enrollees to pay a new $35 copay per service, raising health care costs for millions of low-income Americans.

1. 15 million Americans with $49 billion in medical debt are being denied federal relief, while 15 million more are at higher risk of accruing medical debt. Americans who become uninsured as a result of Trump's and Congressional Republicans' new law will be at greater risk of incurring significant and potentially unforeseen medical debt, which will push potentially millions of families into bankruptcy. To add insult to injury, the Trump administration's Consumer Financial Protection Bureau petitioned a court to vacate a rule that would have barred medical debt from appearing on Americans' credit reports, a decision that will make it more expensive for Americans with medical debt to borrow money and create deep economic instability for families. And now, the Trump administration is attempting - beyond the limits of its legal authority - to prevent states from stepping in to protect individuals with medical debt.

1. Millions of Americans will have to pay "hundreds of dollars more in out-of-pocket costs" for ACA coverage due to the Trump administration's final Marketplace rule. In June, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services finalized a so-called "program integrity" rule that throws up to almost two million Americans off of their coverage, drives up premiums, and sends out-of-pocket costs soaring, while making private health plans, including employer-sponsored plans, more expensive.

1. Millions of Americans will pay more for prescription drugs due to Trump's and Congressional Republicans' nearly $9 billion handout to Big Pharma. The Republican budget law exempts certain drugs, including the blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda, from selection for price negotiation under Medicare, forcing seniors to pay higher drug prices and costing taxpayers $8.8 billion over 10 years. At the same time, launch prices across several major drug categories are also rising, costing our health system an additional $1 billion.

Over 90 percent of American voters say it is important for Congress and the President to lower health care costs. We urge the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans to join us to lower Americans' health care costs and reopen the government.

Sincerely,

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