Income-based subsidies have been part of the Affordable Care Act from the beginning. These subsidies take the form of tax credits designed to make health insurance premiums more affordable for low- and middle-income Americans.

During the COVID shutdowns, these subsidies were expanded to cover more people and enhanced to provide greater benefits. These temporary measures were part of the American Rescue Plan of 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. The extra subsidies expire at the end of this year.

The current budget impasse is the result of Democratic insistence that the expanded subsidies be extended and Republican insistence that the expanded subsidies expire as scheduled.

So what exactly are these subsidies, and who gets them?

Two factors are involved. The first is income a

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