House drives toward Obamacare cliff with neither party eager to find bipartisan ground on subsidies

House Democratic and Republican leaders are inching closer to the expiration of Obamacare subsidies at the end of the year, and both parties have decided that doing nothing is better than reaching a bipartisan deal.

The House is set to vote on the Republicans' Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act this week, a buffet-style approach to addressing healthcare by combining provisions from previous bills that have previously passed the lower chamber. It is largely expected to serve as a messaging bill and will likely not become law before the Affordable Care Act subsidies expire on Dec. 31.

The two parties have been engaged in a tug of war over how best to address healthcare since Democrats made it their central argument during the government shutdown. Neither has been willing to support the other's demands, leading Congress likely toward an impasse during the final week of the 2025 session.