Moderate Democrat breaks with Jeffries on bipartisan Obamacare subsidy bill

A moderate House Democrat has split with his party’s leader over a compromise to extend enhanced ObamaCare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year.

The subsidies are a key demand from Democrats in exchange for supporting legislation to end the government shutdown.

Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., is among House Democrats supporting a bipartisan bill to extend those tax credits for another year.

But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called a one-year extension a “laughable proposition” in comments to reporters Tuesday.

Suozzi, who also supports a permanent extension, said the two sides should start negotiating at some point, even without a perfect solution.

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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Oct. 3, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“A one-year extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits is not acceptable. It’s a failure,” Jeffries said, referring to ObamaCare.

“What world are these MAGA extremists living in right now to think Democrats are going to accept a one-year extension from a group of people, i.e. Republicans, who just permanently extended massive tax breaks for their billionaire donors?”

But it’s not just Republicans supporting this bill: The bill has a total of 11 Democratic co-sponsors out of 25 total supporters.

Suozzi told Fox News Digital in response to Jeffries’ rejection: “Republicans and Democrats both need to come to the negotiating table.”

“This bill is not perfect – I would prefer a permanent extension, and I would happily settle for a multi-year extension – but right now our priority must be stopping the massive health insurance premium increases that are expected to hit mailboxes in less than a month,” Suozzi said.

“We cannot afford to remain in a stalemate, with each side waiting for the other to blink.”

Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., speaks during a campaign launch event February 11, 2024 in Plainview, New York. (Mary Altaffer/AP Photo)

A spokesperson for Rep. Jared Golden, Democrat of Maine, another co-sponsor of the bill, pointed Fox News Digital to the Democrat’s comments on its substack days before closing.

“Our bipartisan bill would extend the appropriations for another year. Our coalition already includes 12 House Republicans – a critical bloc of support for passing a bill in the GOP-controlled House. And Senate Republicans are already interested in a deal,” Golden wrote in those comments.

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“As we negotiate, I see two sides that sincerely want to get to ‘yes,’ which gives me hope that we can avoid price hikes and coverage losses in January. A government shutdown would only jeopardize this work.”

Golden was the only House Democrat to vote last month for the GOP-led bill aimed at avoiding a government shutdown.

The bill, called a continuing resolution (CR), would keep federal funding levels roughly stable through Nov. 21, while including additional spending for the security of national officials amid heightened political threat.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House on September 29, 2025, in Washington, as House Speaker Mike Johnson listens. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

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But Democrats, furious at being left out of negotiations over federal funding, have widely said they will reject any deal that does not include an extension of the expiring ObamaCare subsidies.

Suozzi and several other Democrats who favor the one-year extension are also co-sponsors of legislation that would permanently extend the enhanced ObamaCare subsidies.

The office of Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., stressed to Fox News Digital that he was also a co-sponsor of that bill, but declined to comment on the year-old bill or its rejection by Jeffries.

But the bill is likely a failure for Republican Party leaders in Congress, who say some reform of the system is necessary if these health care credits are to be extended.

Fox News Digital reached out to the eight other co-sponsors of the one-year extension bill, but did not receive a response to Jeffries’ comments as of publication time.