Congressman Gonzalez and Bipartisan Lawmakers Push for Health Care Negotiations Before Promised Senate Vote

Contact: Alexis Torres, Alexis@mail.house.gov

Washington, D.C.—After Republican Senate leadership promised a December vote to address expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34) and a bipartisan group of his colleagues requested that Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer work with House lawmakers to craft a comprehensive and bipartisan health care proposal.

In the letter last week, the members wrote, “If we work together, our hope is that the bill will not only achieve a sixty-vote majority in the Senate but will also then move to the House for immediate consideration and passage.”

Because ACA Open Enrollment runs from now to January 15, 2026, many South Texas families are turning to the Health Insurance Marketplace to find a low-cost plan that meets their needs. Republicans already passed their “One Big, Ugly Bill” earlier this year that will kick 15 million Americans off their coverage.  Now, nearly 130,000 South Texans in the 34th Congressional District of Texas will see their insurance premiums skyrocket if Republicans allow ACA tax credits to expire at the end of the year. A 60-year-old couple earning $82,800 a year would see an annual increase of $16,639, and a family of four earning $64,000 a year would see an increase of $2,571.

While Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has not publicly committed to holding a vote on ACA tax credits, Congressman Gonzalez also signed a discharge petition to force a House vote on extending ACA tax credits subsidies for three years. It currently has 183 out of the 218 signatures needed for consideration.

Joining Congressman Gonzalez in last week’s letter are Representatives Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), Juan Ciscomani (AZ-6), Jen Kiggans (VA-2), Maggie Goodlander (NH-2), Jeff Van Drew (NJ-2), Susie Lee (NV-3), Don Bacon (NE-2), Ed Case (HI-1), Mike Lawler (NY-17), Greg Landsman (OH-1), Jeff Hurd (CO-3), Darren Soto (FL-9), Rob Bresnahan, Jr. (PA-8), Tom Barrett (MI-7), Debbie Dingell (MI-6), Tom Kean, Jr. (NJ-7), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Ryan Mackenzie (PA-7), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Monica De La Cruz (TX-15), George Whitesides (CA-27), Maria Elvira Salazar (FL-27), Donald Davis (NC-1), Scott Peters (CA-50), Jared Moskowitz (FL-23), Josh Riley (NY-19), Laura Gillen (NY-4), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03), Carlos Gimenez (FL-28) and Emilia Sykes (OH-13). 

Read the full letter here.