As open enrollment begins for millions of Americans, young adults who have aged out of their parents' health insurance plans are confronting what advocates call a "health insurance cliff" — a sharp drop-off in affordable coverage options that could leave many without protection.

The crisis is particularly acute for those who turned 26 this year and lost coverage under the Affordable Care Act's provision allowing young adults to remain on family plans. With enhanced ACA tax credits set to expire at the end of this year, this demographic faces the prospect of significantly higher premiums or going without insurance entirely.

"Right now, I do not have health insurance," Destiny Bryson, a 26-year-old single mother of two, veteran and recent college graduate from Houston, Texas, told Scripps

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