HEALTHCARE

Health insurance costs are set to rise in 2026 for many North Carolinians, after Congress decided not to vote on extending Affordable Care Act insurance tax credits, which were cut in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and expire at the end of the year.

For four years, Nancy Weaver has accessed essential healthcare through the Affordable Care Act. Now she faces an uncertain future as Republicans in Congress are set to allow key subsidies to expire, raising her monthly premium by $1,600 a month.

The governor cited court rulings that blocked some of the cuts, but said the state’s Medicaid fund would still run out of money in the spring if Republicans failed to resolve their 6-month dispute over funding it.

For the third year in a row, the March of Dimes gave the state a D+ for its record of ensuring healthy pregnancies and providing adequate access to prenatal care.

Medicare Advantage and traditional Medicare enrollees could see increases in premiums, deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses in 2026. 

More than half of the people in the criminal justice system have a mental illness. A state program in NC wants to help them re-enter society. 

With Republicans in D.C. blocking renewed Affordable Care Act subsidies, North Carolina is passing along steep rate hikes for health care coverage. 

The Perinatal Quality Collaborative of NC has been credited with reducing C-section births, boosting breastfeeding and cutting infection rates in the tiniest babies.

Health care experts and advocates for the poor converge on the NC legislature, calling on them to break their Medicaid stalemate. 

With the federal shutdown entering its fourth week, spurred by a stalemate over the cost of health insurance for 22 million Americans on Affordable Care Act plans, a new report shows that over 154 million people with coverage through an employer also face steep price hikes — and that the situation is likely to get…