You Still Have Time to Get Marketplace Health Insurance for 2026 via ACA Open Enrollment 

A 60-year-old couple earning $85,000 could be seeing their annual premium increase by more than $20,000, according to KFF. That’s a budget-buster for many who are in the ACA marketplace because no employer-based coverage is available.

AARP has been urging Congress to extend the enhanced premium tax credits rather than letting them expire. In early January, the House is expected to vote on a proposal to extend the enhanced subsidies for three years, but the measure faces an uphill battle in the Senate.

An October KFF poll found that three-quarters (78 percent) of adults want Congress to extend the enhanced tax credits for ACA insurance plans. The same poll found that 7 in 10 adults who buy their own health insurance say that if their monthly premiums nearly doubled, they could not pay the higher premiums without a significant financial disruption.

About 4 million people will lose coverage and become uninsured with the expiration of the tax credits, the Congressional Budget Office said in September. Urban Institute estimates are closer to 5 million people.

“For a lot of people, [higher premiums] are just out of reach, and they’ll end up dropping coverage,” says Liz Fowler, a distinguished scholar in the department of health policy and management at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Oftentimes, the people who drop tend to be younger and healthier, which then “affects the viability of the risk pool in the long term” and could result in even higher premiums in the future. 

Getting help with enrollment may be more challenging

Another change people enrolling in or shopping for ACA insurance might notice is a shortage of people to field enrollment questions.

Trained navigators, who provide unbiased assistance and help consumers search for health coverage options in the marketplace, faced a 90 percent federal budget starting in early 2025. Layoffs have also affected government employees who assist with resolving coverage issues.

“So, at least in the states where the federal government runs the marketplace, which is a little over half the states, there will be dramatically fewer people on the ground to provide that free, impartial help,” Corlette says.

Some eligibility requirements have changed

Some people previously eligible for ACA coverage may no longer be eligible in 2026 because of new rules.

As of Aug. 25, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients are no longer eligible for marketplace coverage. And lawfully present immigrants with incomes under the poverty line not eligible for Medicaid because they are in the five-year waiting period are no longer eligible for premium tax credits through the marketplaces as in previous years.

An estimated 300,000 people are expected to lose coverage as a result of this change.

What’s more, the special enrollment period that allowed low-income individuals to sign up for health coverage outside of the standard open enrollment window based on their income has been eliminated. However, you still have a special enrollment period if you’ve experienced certain life events, such as a divorce or move.

Picking a plan

If you already have an ACA plan, open enrollment that ends Jan. 15 is the time to make sure your coverage still works for your budget and your health needs. If you do nothing, you’ll be automatically reenrolled.

“Make sure you’re looking at all options,” Fowler says. If you have questions, contact a navigator, whose assistance is free.

Keep in mind that lower-tier plans, which offer lower monthly premiums, often have higher deductibles. If you go with this option, McGough says make sure you have enough savings to pay for care you receive before you reach your deductible.

You’ll also want to make sure your health care providers are in your plan’s network, and that the medications you take are covered under your plan.

Another tip: “See if there’s any state-based assistance that may be available” to help with premium costs, Fowler says.

“The other advice I would have is more a note of caution,” Corlette says. “Outside of the marketplace, outside of healthcare.gov, there are brokers and agents that will sometimes try to sell people insurance products that are cheaper [than a marketplace plan], but they are actually a pretty bad deal, particularly for somebody who’s older, who might have pre-existing conditions, might need more health care.”

If you do work with a broker, different from a navigator, Corlette says, “go with a broker who lives in your community, who has to look you in the eye if you bump into them at the grocery store, because there’s a ton of online brokers now.”

And using one could increase the risk that you’ll end up with an unhelpful insurance product, she says. Brokers have a financial interest in the policy you pick because companies often pay them a commission, higher for plans that insurers are promoting.

Where do you sign up for an ACA plan?

You can shop for federally run ACA plans at healthcare.gov. Twenty states, plus the District of Columbia, have their own marketplaces: 

• California: Covered California
• Colorado: Connect for Health Colorado
• Connecticut: Access Health CT
• D.C.: DC Health Link
• Georgia: Georgia Access
• Idaho: Your Health Idaho
• Illinois: Get Covered Illinois
• Kentucky: Kynect
• Maine: Cover ME
• Maryland: Maryland Health Connection
• Massachusetts: Massachusetts Health Connector
• Minnesota: MN Sure
• Nevada: Nevada Health Link
• New Jersey: Get Covered NJ
• New Mexico: Be Well
• New York: NY State of Health
• Pennsylvania: Pennie
• Rhode Island: Health Source RI
• Vermont: Vermont Health Connect
• Virginia: Virginia’s Insurance Marketplace
• Washington: Washington Health Plan Finder

2026 key dates and deadlines

​Dates may be different for state-run marketplaces.

• Dec. 31: Enhanced premium subsidies for ACA plans ended.
• Jan. 1: Coverage began for those who enrolled by Dec. 15.
• Jan. 15: Open enrollment ends.
• Feb. 1: Coverage starts for those who enrolled in or changed a plan between Dec. 16 and Jan. 15. 
• Nov. 1: Open enrollment starts for the 2027 plans.
• Dec. 15: Open enrollment ends for 2027 plans, a month earlier than previously.

This story, originally published Oct. 28, 2025, has been updated to reflect the end of ACA enhanced premium subsidies Jan. 1, 2026, and other changes.