UPDATE - US House bipartisan coalition moving to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits

​​​​​​​ADDS SENATE MAJORITY LEADER'S REMARKS; INFO

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Thursday that Democrats in the chamber, along with a small group of Republicans, are advancing legislation to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits.

Speaking at a news conference with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Jeffries said the legislation is designed to stop increases in premiums, co-pays and deductibles.

He stressed that the "affordability crisis is not a hoax. It is very real."

He emphasized that every House Democrat supports the bill, along with a “handful” of Republican colleagues, calling the effort an example of bipartisan cooperation. He noted that additional votes are needed before the measure can pass the House.

"Every single House Democrat, joined by a handful of our Republican colleagues -- and we're thankful for the bipartisan partnership that is underway. We have to get that done. There's still two additional votes today before we can get the Affordable Care Act tax credit extension legislation over the finish line," he said.

His remarks came ahead of the lower chamber’s scheduled vote later Thursday on a three-bill spending package to fund multiple federal agencies and programs, as lawmakers scramble to prevent a potential government shutdown later this month.

Congress faces a Jan. 30 deadline to finance key government operations, following the passage of a short-term funding bill that ended the longest government shutdown in US history in November.

Jeffries said the immediate focus is on securing House passage before sending the bill to the Senate. "We'll see what Republicans are willing to do to keep their word that they promised to lower the high cost of living in America," he added.

- 'We need to finish our work'

Schumer echoed Jeffries, saying Democrats are seeking to extend the ACA tax credits for three years to help reduce health care costs.

"Democrats are going to make health care and other high costs, the high cost of living, the number one issue for all of 2026," he said.

If the minibus clears the House, the Senate is likely to consider it next week, leaving limited time to tackle the remaining funding legislation.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune emphasized that Congress faces a pressing deadline to avoid another shutdown.

"We’ve already passed one package of three appropriations bills that was signed into law in November, and now we need to finish our work," he said.

Thune said the House will consider a package of three bills covering commerce, justice and science, energy and water, development and interior and environment appropriations.

Saying that the bills were crafted with bipartisan input from both chambers, Thune said, "I expect we'll see robust bipartisan support for these bills in today's House vote."