Issue link: http://accesshealth.uberflip.com/i/1542565
a cce s s H ea l t h N ews . n e t J a n u a ry 2 0 2 6 Volume 11 | Issue No. 103 22 C athy Thomas had been paying $390 per month for health insurance. In January, that premium jumps to more than $1,000. The retired executive assistant from Olathe, Kansas, has lung cancer. She needs regular surveillance. Dropping coverage is not an option. "I have no choice," she said. Neither do thousands of other women across Missouri and Kansas who watched enhanced premium subsidies expire on Dec. 31, 2025, leaving them scrambling to afford insurance or going without. At the same moment, the Trump administration systematically dismantled Title X family planning funding, withholding $8.5 million from clinics in Missouri and Oklahoma that are part of the Planned Parenthood Great Plains network serving both states. This is not policy. This is punishment. Ground Zero: Missouri and Kansas Laura Mead is 60, self-employed, and facing what she called her first real prospect of going without health care in her adult life. She currently pays $1,100 monthly through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. The actual premium is $1,427. Enhanced subsidies covered the $327 difference. Without them, she expects her costs to double to $2,000 monthly. "For the first time in my adult life, I'm facing a real serious prospect of not having health care," Mead said. She called her congressional representative's office looking for answers. The staff person told her they were "trying to get people who aren't working off those programs." Mead is working. She is self- employed. The ACA marketplace exists precisely for people like her. Carolyn McKee, a small business owner in Holton, Kansas, posted on Facebook that her Blue Cross Blue Shield plan would increase by $700 monthly. Within an hour, more than 40 people commented that their rates were doubling as well. Eileen Spickler of O awa, Kansas, testified before a U.S. Senate subcommi ee about her husband Barry's unexpected early retirement and health struggles. For the first time in their lives, the couple turned to food pantries because groceries no longer fit their budget after paying for health care. Her testimony went viral with comments flooding in. In Missouri, 94% of marketplace enrollees received subsidies in 2025, saving an average of $564 monthly. That help vanished on Jan. 1, 2026. Premiums increased as much as 30% before factoring in subsidy losses, according to the Missouri Independent. Across the state line in Kansas, women face premium increases up to 34%. The numbers sound abstract until you meet the women doing the math. aH Priced Out, Shut Out: How the Gutting of Women's Health Care Makes Being Female Unaffordable in America By Chrissey Breault, Staff Writer Women across income levels will pay more, receive less, and face harder choices. Some will forgo coverage. Some will drain savings. Some will delay care until minor conditions become crises. Some will die.