This fall, many Californians who receive their health insurance plans from Covered California could face increased costs due to billions of dollars in looming cuts to federal subsidies from HR-1, President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which he signed in 2025.
Worse, because of the deep cuts to federal healthcare subsidies, hundreds of thousands of Californians are at risk of losing medical cost assistance or healthcare altogether if they can no longer afford increased premiums. And those who switch to less expensive health plans would likely experience increased out-of-pocket costs when they actually visit a doctor.
To help educate and equip community leaders and healthcare agencies about key pending changes, Covered California held “Connectors to Coverage Health Summit” at the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles earlier this week.
“Having events like the Health Summit is just one of the many steps that Covered California has been taking so far to continue the conversations with community organizations about what’s happening,” said Juan Pimiento, public information officer for Covered California.
Those organizations that directly interface with the public need to fully understand the changes so they can better inform the public ahead of open enrollment for 2027 starting this November.
The primary goal is to help people “make informed, sound decisions” for their families,” Pimiento said.
With California alone losing approximately $2.5 billion after the expiration of enhanced premium tax credits, an estimated 140,000 Californians currently enrolled in state marketplace plans are expected to lose eligibility for subsidies in 2027.
“Keep in mind that about 94% of those people are currently receiving financial subsidies,” noted Pimiento. As a result, many of them could see a significant drop or a complete loss of federal financial assistance, resulting in higher monthly premiums for many individuals and families.
In addition, health insurance rates in the marketplace will increase approximately 9.9% for 2027, driven in part by the expiring federal subsidies and the rising costs of medical services. Despite the statewide increase, Pimiento said it’s actually lower than the average national increase of 14%.
To help offset the losses in federal aid and the planned rate increases, the California legislature has voted to increase the state’s contributions to healthcare subsidies – which was already signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom – from $90 million annually to $300 million for the 2027 coverage year.
“This is not going to cover the immense amount of funds [being lost] that came from the federal government, [but] … because of this, many people will still be able to get coverage. They will still be able to shop and compare different levels of affordable plans in their regions,” said Pimiento.
Due to the increased state subsidies, about 60% of people could see no increases to their monthly premiums for their existing plans. Those who do see rate hikes are encouraged to shop for possible lower-cost options during the open enrollment period starting Nov. 1, stressed Pimiento.
Approximately 26% of people could still qualify for zero-premium plans via Covered California based on their income and other factors – without being enrolled in Medi-Cal – if they qualify for the maximum available subsidies that drop the price of select bronze or silver tier plans down to zero dollars.
Because Covered California plan prices vary by tier and region, a family of three in Orange County earning $41,000 per year could qualify for a silver plan for about $240 a month, and a couple in LA with a household income of $38,000 could get a bronze plan for $0 per month.
As always, said Pimiento, anyone who applies for a health plan through Covered California is automatically directed to Medi-Cal if they qualify for the program based on their family size and income level.
Those who attended the Sept. 22 Health Summit included diverse community organizations and immigrant rights groups, including Esperanza Community Housing and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA); healthcare organizations, including the LA County Medical Association; the education sector, including the LA Unified School District (LAUSD), and frontline advocates, including promotoras, who serve Spanish-speaking Latino communities.
“We have dozens of organizations who [are] lending us their voices by going back out to the communities they serve to share these discussions and information,” said Pimiento, “so we can make sure that we can get as many people as possible informed, so they can choose their health coverage according to their budgets, and according to their needs, for 2027.”
For more information about healthcare coverage, go to: www.healthforcalifornia.com.