“Some people … are calling this ‘repeal but no replace.’ The global number is 16 million people are projected to lose coverage. And that’s the Congressional Budget Office analysis of the House-passed reconciliation bill.”
“It’s estimated that 138,000 of our folks on Medicaid would lose coverage due to that provision. That’s just here in Washington.”
— Ingrid Ulrey, CEO, Washington Health Benefit Exchange
“We are projected as solvent through the end of the century, which is the entire 75-year window that they look at.”
“Only 17% of Washingtonians have retirement savings that are able to replace more than 10% of their pre-retirement income… Most people end up running out of money in their 70s, and certainly by their 80s.”
— Ben Veghte, Director, WA Cares Fund
One of Washington’s top public health leaders warned that pending federal changes could raise costs, reduce coverage, and increase pressure on state budgets and families.
In an interview on Inside Olympia, Washington Health Benefit Exchange CEO Ingrid Ulrey said House-passed federal legislation would hurt Medicaid and state-based insurance exchanges, calling it “repeal but no replace.” The proposal would eliminate enhanced premium subsidies and impose new Medicaid work requirements, which Ulrey said could cause 80,000 people to drop private plans and another 138,000 to lose Medicaid coverage in Washington alone. “We’re concerned,” she said. “Our market could shrink by a third or more.”
Ulrey also warned that shortening enrollment windows and increasing documentation hurdles would destabilize risk pools, leading to higher premiums. Insurers have already requested an average 21.2% rate increase next year, with the looming expiration of tax credits accounting for more than 6% of that spike.
On the same program, WA Cares Fund Director Ben Veghte provided an update on Washington’s first-in-the-nation long-term care benefit. Funded by a mandatory 0.58% payroll premium, the program is set to begin paying benefits in 2026. Veghte said the program is solvent through the end of the century and is expected to significantly expand access to home-based care.
Citing retirement insecurity, Veghte emphasized the program’s value in reducing financial strain on aging Washingtonians and their families. “Most people run out of money by their 70s,” he said, “and long-term care can devastate families who aren’t prepared.”