Rep. Smucker: “We Need Real Reforms to Lower Premiums”

WASHINGTON—Rep. Lloyd Smucker (PA-11), Vice Chair of the House Budget Committee, released the following statement after voting against H.R. 1834, legislation that would extend COVID-era enhanced premium tax credits for three years:

“We want all Americans to have access to quality health care at a price they can afford. Unfortunately, the bill considered today does nothing to move us closer to that goal. Instead, it simply extends the status quo that we know is not working. 

Democrats promised the “Affordable” Care Act would lower costs, but the opposite has happened. Premiums have been driven higher across the health care system—including for Americans who are not enrolled in ACA plans—and families are left with fewer affordable options.

Taxpayers are paying more and getting less. Insurance companies reap the most benefits, while patients outcomes have not improved in proportion to the hundreds of billions of taxpayer subsidies poured into the system. Rather than taking this opportunity to rethink and improve a system that is clearly falling short, this bill doubles down on policies that have failed to deliver on Obamacare’s promises. 

This moment calls for real solutions and thoughtful reform. Republicans in Congress are actively working on broader, commonsense approaches to lower health insurance costs for all Americans. That is why I supported the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act in December because it included reforms to expand access, increase competition, and actually bring down premiums. 

I opposed this short-term extension of COVID-era enhanced tax credits because it preserves a broken system. We can lower the cost of health care for all Americans through targeted reforms, not by perpetuating short-sighted failed policies.”

Background:

On December 17, 2025, Rep. Smucker voted in favor of the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act (H.R. 6703), which passed the House. It awaits action in the Senate.

The Congressional Budget Office reports the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act would “reduce gross benchmark premiums by 11 percent.”

Key provisions of the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act include,courtesy of Speaker Mike Johnson: 

Lowers Premiums for all Americans

1. Pharmacy Benefit Manager Transparency: Requires PBMs to provide employers with detailed data on prescription drug spending, rebates, spread pricing, and formulary decisions—empowering plans and workers with the transparency they deserve.
2. Appropriates Cost Sharing Reduction Payments: Provides necessary funding for CSR payments beginning in 2027, lowering premiums, and stabilizing the individual market while ensuring taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. Relief would be better directed towards low-income enrollees that need them.

Improves Health Care Options for America’s Workers

1. Association Health Plans: Expands access to Association Health Plans by allowing employers—including self-employed workers—to band together across industries to purchase affordable, high-quality coverage.
2. Access to Stop-Loss Insurance: Ensures small and mid-sized employers can protect themselves from catastrophic claims by clarifying that stop-loss insurance is not “health insurance coverage.” This would allow small businesses to offer their employees more tailored, affordable care.
3. CHOICE Arrangements: Codifies and strengthens 2019 rules allowing employers to offer defined contributions for employees to purchase their own coverage—renamed as CHOICE arrangements—and permits employees to pay premiums pre-tax.

About H.R. 1834:

1. The Government Accountability Office, Congress’s nonpartisan, independent watchdog, released a December 2025 report, which according to the Ways and Means Committee, found “large-scale systemic failures that allow fake identities, dead people, and massive improper use of Social Security numbers to receive Obamacare subsidies.
2. The report also stated that $21 billion was paid out to health insurers with no evidence of identity verification in 2023 and $94 million in taxpayer-funded subsidies were sent on behalf of deceased individuals.
3. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reports that extending enhanced premium tax credits for three years will increase the deficit by $80.6 billion.

Read the GAO report and more from the House Ways and Means Committee.

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