Hospitals NAICS 622110

Nov 7, 2025 - ACA Insurance Premiums May Increase Significantly

• Affordable Care Act (ACA) premiums may increase significantly in 2026 because enhanced premium tax credits for policies are set to expire at the end of 2025. Hospitals may be negatively impacted if patients refuse services due to loss of insurance. The credits are a key political flashpoint fueling the ongoing government shutdown, according to Investopedia. Congressional Democrats say that they won’t vote to reopen the government without action on subsidies and other health care issues, while GOP leaders say they won’t negotiate on health care reform while the government is shut down. The expanded credits, first introduced by the Biden-era American Rescue Plan, increased the previous subsidy amount and eliminated the eligibility income cap. The credits are commonly credited with making Obamacare plans cheaper, doubling signups, and driving the uninsured rate to record lows, according to Investopedia. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities researchers found that without the enhanced premium tax credits, an average ACA enrollee will see their out-of-pocket premiums more than double, spiking by $1,000 a year. People in their sixties with middle incomes could pay $25,000 more.
• Two COVID-era federal government programs that expanded access to healthcare expired on September 30, 2025. One provided greater flexibility for telehealth and another allowed hospitals to continue high-level care at home. Both lost funding when lawmakers failed to pass a budget plan addressing either by September 30. Budgets proposed from both sides would have continued the flexibilities through at least October or November. Restrictions on who could get telehealth services covered by Medicare were tighter before the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual healthcare appointments were mostly reserved for beneficiaries living in rural areas, provider facilities in rural areas, or those working with certain types of providers. Some pandemic-driven changes were permanent but others rely on temporary waivers to operate. Some of these temporary allowances included the ability to use telehealth services from anywhere without geographic restrictions, to have appointments in audio-only formats, and to receive mental health and behavioral healthcare virtually without regular in-person appointments.

• Hospitals are buying small physician practices and that is driving up the price of care, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBEA). About 42.2% of physicians worked in private practices (a practice that was wholly-owned by physicians) in 2024, down from 60% in 2012, according to the American Medical Association's Physician Practice Benchmark Survey. Health systems see opportunities to achieve more clinical integration and expand referral networks by acquiring independent physician practices. The acquisitions aren't limited to hospitals: Private equity, insurers, and businesses like Amazon are also acquiring medical practices from doctors facing declining reimbursement and high overhead costs.
• The Producer Price Index for general medical and surgical hospitals increased 3.06% year over year in August, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. (BLS). Hospital industry employment and average wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first seven months of 2025, according to the BLS.