Presented by Alliance for Aging Research {beacon} Health Care Health Care The Big Story Poll shows broad support for reinstating enhanced ACA subsidies With the midterm elections almost a week away, a new poll shows broad support across the political spectrum for reinstating the enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies that congressional Republicans allowed to...
On the campaign trail in Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed rides a wave of support for Medicare for All
Days before the midterms, as Americans prepare for historic cuts led by Republicans, the US Senate candidate catches a rising tide of interest in single-payer healthcare
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic US Senate candidate, starts this day on the campaign trail in Escanaba, Michigan, where nearby Wisconsin dairy country spills into dense forests and the sandy shores of Green Bay.
This is the upper peninsula – the “UP” – a rural slash of land north of Michigan’s mitt. Electorally,...
Obama rallies rapturous Michigan crowd for El-Sayed: ‘He’ll finish the job we started’
Former president speaks to crowd of thousands in support of Abdul El-Sayed for US Senate and Democratic ticket
Barack Obama told a Detroit crowd on Saturday that Abdul El-Sayed was “fighting for change, real change, that will get money out of politics and put money in your pocket”, as he threw his weight behind the Democratic Senate candidate and the rest of the ticket on the first day of early voting in Michigan.
Obama said in front of thousands of onlookers at Cass technical ...
The false promise of free health care comes with an invoice for the middle class
"Money out of politics! Money in your pocket! Medicare for All!" That's the rally chant of Abdul El-Sayed, who won Michigan's Democratic Senate primary in August. It's catchy. So was "If you like your health care plan, you can keep it." PolitiFact named that line its 2013 Lie of the Year, but only after roughly...
The Affordable Care Act has proven unaffordable
A report from the Peterson-Kaiser Family Foundation indicates that ObamaCare premiums are projected to increase significantly through 2027, potentially triggering an insurance death spiral as enrollment declines following the expiration of enhanced subsidies.
Corruption charges once propelled MAGA. Now they may doom it
You can find the origins of the MAGA movement, now hurtling toward its rendezvous with the midterm electorate, in many places. The most obvious, straight-line antecedent is, of course, the Tea Party revolt of 2009 and 2010. The bipartisan backlash against the bailouts of Wall Street and Detroit fused with the conservative outrage at ObamaCare...
Some conservative states aren’t using Medicaid hardship exemption – for political reasons
States like Missouri and Iowa are choosing to not take up exemption designed to help low-income people keep coverage during hardship
Some conservative states that have rejected hardship exemptions for the new Medicaid requirements may be choosing not to due to political reasons, experts say.
New federal work requirements for Medicaid, slated to come into effect on 1 January, mean that adults enrolled through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid expansion will have to work, attend school, volunteer, or take part in another qualifying activity at least 80 hours a month to maintain their coverage.
Continue reading...
Health insurance is the sleeper midterms issue: Why premiums are spiking
Americans are bracing to pay significantly more for health insurance next month, whether they have Affordable Care Act plans or get insurance through work. Premiums for some people could be the highest in decades, while others may pay more in the form of out-of-pocket costs like copays or deductibles. People are getting squeezed by...
Will Trump’s economy sink Republicans in the US midterm elections? Our reporters answered your questions
The high cost of living has Americans angrier than ever. Guardian reporters answered your questions about the US economy ahead of November
Sign up for the Stakes newsletter for more midterms coverage
Send us your questions on Trump’s immigration agenda ahead of the midterms
LucccA asks: Why are labor unions in the US still not as well-organized compared to the rest of the world? I know there was a push against them in the past—does that still have an effect today? Also, why are there so many right-leaning unions in the US?
Michael: A lot of reasons. The US has low union density compared to other wealthy nations, currently at 10.0%, and that has been on a precipitous decline for the past few decades for a variety of reasons that include anti-union and union busting campaigns, outdated labor laws where employers often retaliate for union organizing or delay bargaining for years, as we are seeing with Starbucks, where there is no union contract after nearly five years since the first store won its union election in December 2021.Right to work laws in the US also undermine labor unions and starve them of resources. To the extent that there are right leaning labor unions in the US, they typically are law enforcement unions that consistently endorse and back Republican candidates despite the Republican Party in the US opposing collective bargaining. Some unions like the Teamsters have been making efforts to get Republicans to support legislation and in turn receive endorsements from the union, and this has shown up this election cycle with the Teamsters endorsing Republicans like Congressman Max Miller or Kansas Senator Roger Marshall, who are both facing very competitive re-election battles.
Heather: There’s a bunch of ideas floating around on cutting costs for groceries, healthcare and energy bills. A key thing Democrats are promising if they regain power in Congress is to wrestle back authority on trade and repeal Trump’s tariffs, which would lower what it costs compaines to import. A second is to advance a vote to stop the war in Iran, which could calm fuel prices. If Democrats retake the Senate, expect Elizabeth Warren to become chair of the powerful banking committe, and push forward some curbs on private equity investments. And Democrats have been coalescing around more government funding for childcare, a notable move to the left in recent years. Hakeem Jeffries, who will be House Speaker if Democrats win there, is promising to reinstate ACA tax cuts and roll back Medicaid cuts, but the party is divided on Medicare For All, with DSA candidates making promises on the campaign trail and more centrist Dems being pretty quiet.
Republicans running for Congress have been talking a lot about ways to lower gas prices, especially suspending the fuel tax, and shaving utility bills by making tech companies and other big users pay more. Some have promised to curb Trump’s tariffs, including Michigan’s Mike Rogers, and others are proposing suspending data center building after public backlash.
Continue reading...
KFF: Individual health insurance enrollment fell 18 percent in June
Enrollment in ObamaCare and other health insurance plans on the individual market dropped by more than 4.5 million people over the past year, according to an analysis by health research organization KFF. Enrollment fell from 25.2 million in 2025 to 20.5 million in June 2026, an 18 percent drop — the largest year-to-year decrease since...