U.S. Congressman Brett Guthrie is suggesting his party won't budge in the ongoing government shutdown. That's despite hearing directly from those affected by the impasse, centered around health care.
The Bowling Green Republican held a round table Wednesday in Radcliff near the Ft. Knox Army post and fielded concerns from those in the military, government, and nonprofits, about the strain they're feeling as SNAP benefits are set to expire on Saturday and service member pay likely running out by mid-November.
Starting Nov. 1, Kentuckians who purchase health insurance on the individual market are likely to be hit with sticker shock as open enrollment begins to select 2026 coverage plans.
Guthrie said he's open to debating an extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits–something Congressional Democrats are demanding– but he says the government should reopen first.
"November 1 is Saturday. Open the government today and let's start negotiating," Guthrie told reporters. "We're not gonna get it done by Nov. 1. Do you expect us to tell the men and women in uniform to wait for the next two or three weeks, not get paid, so we can negotiate ACA tax credits?' I don't think that's fair to the military whatsoever."
Now in its fourth week, the shutdown is the second longest in U.S. history.
Guthrie was steadfast in demanding Senate Democrats support a clean continuing resolution passed by the House, rather than their version of a funding bill that extends ACA tax credits.
"Part of it is funding to allow illegal aliens to have healthcare. So they're saying we're not going to fund SNAP because we want to negotiate on all these other issues unrelated to SNAP," Guthrie said. "What we're saying is fund SNAP and then we can sit down and talk about making healthcare more affordable."
ACA tax credits expire in December, which is expected to drastically raise the cost of premiums for those who purchase insurance through Kentucky's online marketplace, Kynect.
U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey of Louisville, Kentucky's lone Democrat in Congress, urged his GOP colleagues this week to accept Senate Democrats' stopgap funding bill that includes the ACA tax credit extension. McGarvey said about 100,000 Kentuckians stand to see their monthly premium rise as high as 37%.
"This is something that impacts every single person-urban, rural, Democrat, Republican, everywhere in the country," McGarvey added. "That's why we need to go ahead and come back to Washington, open up the government and make sure these tax credits are extended so that people can afford their health care."
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