Week Ahead in Washington: December 7

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Congress returns to Washington this week with healthcare front and center as lawmakers face a tight deadline to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits.

With only two work weeks left before both the House and Senate adjourn for the rest of the year, Congress still has no deal to extend the enhanced ACA tax credits.

The enhanced subsidies, which were created during the coronavirus pandemic, are set to expire at the end of 2025. If they lapse, health insurance premiums could increase for tens of millions of Americans.

As part of a deal to end the government shutdown last month, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) promised Senate Democrats a vote on a bill to extend the credits this week.

The bill, which needs 60 votes to break a potential filibuster, would extend the subsidies for three years.

A bipartisan group of House members also unveiled a proposal last week to extend the subsidies. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has not committed to bringing it up for a vote.

Also this week, the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments for three major cases.

The justices will discuss President Donald Trump’s power to fire people appointed to independent agencies in Trump v. Slaughter. They’ll also hear arguments about whether campaign finance limits on coordination between political parties and candidates violates the First Amendment in NRSC v. FEC.

The court will discuss how courts can determine whether a defendant has an intellectual disability making them ineligible for the death penalty in Hamm v. Smith.