NH Health Leaders Warn Granite Staters About Rising ACA Costs and Expiring Subsidies

Watch the full-event here
Concord, NH – Today, Protect Our Care New Hampshire hosted a virtual press conference featuring Dr. Marie Elizabeth Ramas, President of the New Hampshire Medical Society, and Mariana Poore, Coordinator of Health Insurance Navigation at the Foundation for Healthy Communities, to highlight the urgent challenges facing Granite Staters as ACA open enrollment continues.
Speakers emphasized that this year’s open enrollment is one of the most important in state history, with more than 70,000 Granite Staters relying on Marketplace coverage—an all-time record. At the same time, expiring enhanced subsidies, rising medical costs, and ongoing Trump–GOP efforts to slash ACA tax credits are driving premiums sharply upward. New Hampshire insurers have already announced average rate hikes of 26% for 2026, with some plans costing families twice as much as last year.

“With the enhanced subsidies ending, too many families are facing impossible choices,” Dr. Ramas said. “People are deciding whether to cut essentials, delay medical care, or drop coverage altogether. That is unacceptable in a state where we know how vital preventive and primary care is.”
Mariana Poore noted that the expiring subsidies will particularly impact lower-income and middle-class households that have relied on reduced premiums: “The subsidies helped thousands of Granite Staters access affordable plans.”

“There’s a tremendous amount of fear about losing access to care they already have,” Dr. Ramas said. ”One of my patients—a kidney transplant recipient—received a letter she couldn’t understand right before open enrollment. It makes me wonder how many Granite Staters are getting lost in the cracks.”

Mariana Poore added that: “There has been a lot of hesitancy and confusion around premium tax credits. What we’re emphasizing to people is that their credits can still be available — but the amount may be different. Education, persistence, and kindness are key to helping people understand their options.”

She also said that "affordability, medications, and keeping their providers are huge concerns. I walk people through their health needs as the top priority and help them narrow down options. My goal isn’t which carrier they choose — it’s that they’re covered, happy, and healthy.”

Open enrollment continues through December 15, and speakers urged residents to review their options and seek assistance through trusted navigators before the deadline.

You can watch the full event here, and learn more about the health care crisis here.