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John Thune: “23 to 24 million Americans are in the Obamacare exchanges.”

Featuring: John Thune, Republican | Senate Majority Leader, South Dakota

Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families

Published December 10, 2025 | Video Starts at 03:12

So remember again, 150 million Americans, almost 50% get their coverage through their employer. Another almost 40%, 140 million Americans get theirs through Medicare or Medicaid. And then this little sliver right here, which represents about 23 to 24 million Americans are in the Obamacare exchanges. Now I just as a point of fact want to show you next slide what's actually happened in those various markets. (03:12–03:18)

CLAIM

Asserts that 23 to 24 million Americans are enrolled in Obamacare exchanges.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

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John Thune

“Premium cost increase in the Obamacare exchange went up 129% since 2014.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 04:13-04:43
“Insurance rates in the individual marketplace have gone up 221% since 2013.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 04:47-04:59
“Employer marketplace is shrinking, with coverage dropping from 92% in 2010 to 64% in 2025.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 06:42-06:55
“The 10 year score on this program is now $1.3 trillion.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 08:45-08:48
“High income people, people making 500, $600,000 a year, can go into this marketplace and get subsidies from the federal taxpayers.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 15:54-16:05
“The Government Accountability Office found that 95% of these [fraudulent claims] got enrolled by the insurance companies.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 16:50-16:59
“Democrat plan that will lower health care costs is a fantasy.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 00:38-00:44
“Democrat proposal is a three-year extension of the status quo, costing $83 billion.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 01:17-01:22
“Obamacare costs continue to spiral.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 01:32-01:35
“Almost 50% of Americans, about 150 million, get health care coverage through their employers.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 02:58-03:04
“Almost 40%, about 140 million Americans, get health care through Medicare or Medicaid.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 03:04-03:10
“The employer market, particularly small business market, is shrinking.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 07:25-07:30
“The Obamacare market is expanding and expanding pretty dramatically and premium cost about double of what you would see in the employer…”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 07:30-07:41
“Democrats' proposal is a three-year extension of the Biden Covid bonuses.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 08:09-08:26
“The spending went up dramatically when the very issue that we're talking about here today, which is these Biden Covid bonuses, they were…”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 09:16-09:32
“In 2021, as most people remember, we were kind of past the pandemic.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 09:31-09:37
“In 2022, as I recall, the pandemic was pretty well past us.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 10:20-10:24
“In 2021, they took off the income caps. There are no income caps on this program.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 12:06-12:15
“It used to be 400% of poverty, which for a family, 4 is about 128 grand a year.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 12:15-12:21
“The number of people who haven't filed claims literally since 2021 has tripled.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 13:35-13:41
“The number of people who didn't file a claim tripled in the last four years.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 14:02-14:10
“Insurance companies are incentivized to increase premiums.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 14:42-14:47
“Businesses are incentivized to push people out of their marketplace into the individual marketplace where the taxpayers will subsidize the…”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 14:47-14:57
“The extension [of the program] for three years at a cost, I might add, of $83 billion scored by the CBO.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 16:26-17:58
“This does nothing, nothing to lower the cost of health insurance.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 18:18-18:24
“A proposal we're going to put on the floor will actually reduce premiums according to the Congressional Budget Office by about 10 to 11%.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 19:50-19:58
“The scores is a $30 billion savings.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 20:07-20:11
“In my state of South Dakota, it's going to reduce them [premiums] by $900.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 20:59-21:04
“A three year extension with no reforms doesn't adjust income limits.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 21:33-21:38
“You can still get unlimited income, still qualify in these changes.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 21:37-21:42
“This program continues to drive up costs in the individual marketplace.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 21:53-21:59
“Is about double what it is in the employer marketplace.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 22:01-22:04
“A three year extension that actually backtracks on some of the reforms that have been made earlier.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 22:25-22:30
“Creates more fraud, more waste, more abuse, higher prices.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 22:32-22:39
“A higher cost for the American taxpayer.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 22:41-22:44
“We are offering something that actually does reduce health care costs and premiums.”
Thune: Health Care 101: How Democrats' Policies Fail Patients and Families | Uploaded December 10, 2025 | 23:22-23:28