Gov. Gretchen Whitmer addressing doctors, nurses and industry stakeholders before signing an executive order Friday on expanding access to affordable health care at Munson Medical Center in Traverse City, Mich. (Ben Solis/Michigan Advance)

TRAVERSE CITY – Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer took executive action Friday to help Michiganders maintain affordable access to health insurance after congressional Republican’s moves to make it harder for people to get and keep their federal marketplace health plans.

Whitmer signed an executive directive for the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services to raise awareness and educate residents on their options to keep or get insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplace plans when enrollment opens in November.

“We wanted to make (this effort) formalized because it’s crucial that we maximize our ACA enrollment,” Whitmer said. “It’s crucial that people across Michigan know that they have the tools and the ability to get answers to their questions.”

Whitmer added that she can’t unilaterally shield Michigan from all the impacts of the Republican “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” now that President Donald Trump has signed the bill into law, nor can she reverse the impact of the majority Republican Michigan congressional delegation’s votes to push it through.

“What I can do is whatever it takes to help make life a little easier for Michiganders, and the work we can do in state government to ensure that people have a little help in these challenges,” Whitmer said. “No Michigander should have to choose between paying their bills and getting to the doctor or buying groceries.”

The federal program’s enhanced premium tax credits are set to expire at the end of the year, which were key aspects of former President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act and extended via the Inflation Reduction Act. The subsidies worked to lower health insurance premiums in the wake of the COVID pandemic.

Trump’s signature budget bill includes potentially significant changes to the Affordable Care Act and steep cuts to Medicaid, which Democrats have warned would affect scores of Americans and Michigan residents, especially in rural areas represented by Republicans.

As it relates to the Affordable Care Act, the Republican budget bill did not extend enhanced premium tax credits for marketplace plans, according to the Center for American Progress, an independent nonpartisan policy institute. That could mean 20 million federal marketplace insurance enrollees could see their premium costs spike when open enrollment opens in November.

Whitmer’s office Friday elaborated on the impact of those credits ending, noting that residents on marketplace plans would see the cost of health care rise by $700 per person, or roughly $2,400 for a family of four people.

Michigan families will also have a shorter window to enroll due to changes made in the budget bill.

Whitmer’s executive order signed Friday would direct the Department of Insurance and Financial Services to increase awareness on the changes spearheaded by Trump and Republicans in Washington, D.C.

“(Trump’s budget bill) threatens to really devastate health care writ large, but especially in rural areas,” Whitmer said. “This is why it matters not just to one community or another, whether or not you get your health care through Medicaid or through your workplace or another method. Everyone pays a price if these systems are not supported and maintained. When you need care, you need it close and you need quality.”

DIFS Director Anita Fox said access to affordable quality care wasn’t just a cornerstone of good medical health, but also economic and financial security.

“We are proud that Michigan currently has the lowest uninsured rate in history, but new federal changes will raise out-of-pocket costs and make it more difficult to apply for and stay enrolled in health insurance, jeopardizing Michiganders’ health,” Fox said.

The governor added that she hoped the executive order would help people hold on to their health care or find another plan that works for them – and one they can afford – and without mounting debt from being uninsured or underinsured.

“This is one way we’re seeking to mitigate the harm that’s coming from the bill that passed in Congress recently,” Whitmer said.

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