Republican moderates in the House, led by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, filed a discharge petition to force a floor vote on a two-year extension of Affordable Care Act premium tax credits through 2027. The proposal adds an income cap, expands access to Health Savings Accounts, and introduces a modest monthly premium for the lowest-income recipients to deter fraud. House Speaker Mike Johnson said the package lacks majority GOP support and invoked the informal Hastert rule; competing plans from Democrats and some Republicans leave the outcome uncertain before the Dec. 18 deadline.
House GOP Moderates Push to Force Vote on Expiring ACA Premium Tax Credits
Washington — Republican moderates in the House broke with party leadership on Wednesday by filing a discharge petition to force a floor vote on expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits, a move that could carry meaningful political consequences ahead of next year’s elections.
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) filed the petition seeking a two-year extension of the subsidies — through 2027 — that would also impose an income cap on eligibility, expand access to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), and require a modest monthly premium from the lowest-income beneficiaries to curb fraudulent enrollments. A small group of GOP moderates signed on quickly.
The procedural maneuver is significant because a discharge petition needs 218 signatures to force a House vote. That threshold would almost certainly require backing from a majority of Democrats, who so far have pushed for a longer, three-year extension without those policy changes.
Leadership Response and Political Stakes
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said the two-year extension lacks majority support within the GOP conference and cited the informal "Hastert rule," under which a speaker generally brings legislation to the floor only when a majority of the majority backs it. Johnson said Republicans have been unable to cobble together enough votes.
"I understand the concerns that they have. I'm very sympathetic to that. We have spent many, many hours trying to find a way out of the conundrum that we're in, with regard to those extensions," Johnson said. "We just can't get Republican votes on that for lots of reasons, not enough of them."
Fitzpatrick described his package as "the best product we can put together," saying it reflected feedback from members of the House, Senate and the White House. He portrayed the discharge petition as a last-ditch option to secure a vote before the end-of-year deadline.
Shortly after Fitzpatrick's filing, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) filed a competing discharge petition supporting a different bipartisan approach: a one-year extension with income limits followed by a second year that would include more significant reforms, such as eliminating $0 premiums with need-based exceptions.
House GOP leaders said they will outline a path forward next week but have released few details beyond promising votes on measures they claim will lower premiums for "100% of Americans." Lawmakers have until Dec. 18, the last scheduled day in session for the year, to resolve the issue.
The dispute underscores growing tensions within the Republican conference between moderates focused on pragmatic solutions to prevent a policy lapse and leaders wary of forcing divisive votes or relying on Democratic support. Whatever path lawmakers choose will have immediate consequences for millions of Americans who receive premium tax credits and for the political landscape heading into the next elections.
