Meet the newly uninsured

Unless Congress acts in the next month, up to four million Americans are expected to become uninsured, because they can no longer afford their health insurance premiums.

While Congress has finally reached a deal to end the longest government shutdown on record, during which Democrats pressed Republicans to lower people’s health insurance costs, Democrats relented without a compromise that would avert the country’s imminent health care policy catastrophe. The two sides now need to agree on a deal to prevent the millions of Americans who purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces from facing an average 30 percent premium hike next year.

Key takeaways from our interviews with the new uninsured • Vox spoke with a group of people from a variety of backgrounds —