On Wednesday, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania expressed optimism about engaging in “sincere” discussions with Senate Majority Leader John Thune from South Dakota regarding the extension of enhanced ObamaCare tax credits once the government resumes operations.

Fetterman, who recently supported the Republican proposal to abolish the Senate filibuster to facilitate government reopening, emphasized the dual importance of ensuring government funding and advocating for the health care subsidies that have become a focal point in the current shutdown debate.

“Two things must be true at this time: Keeping the government open is our core responsibility as a senator — I mean, that must be open — and then we would negotiate to extend those tax credits,” Fetterman told Cory Smith and Hillary Howard on “Sunrise on the Hill” on Wednesday.

“I genuinely believe that Majority Leader Thune is a man of integrity, and I am confident we can have a sincere dialogue about extending the ACA subsidies,” Fetterman stated.

He further expressed his support for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, remarking, “I also back my own leader, Schumer, in this discussion.”

The proposed “nuclear option” would enable Senate Republicans to approve a funding bill passed by the House with a simple majority vote, bypassing the usual 60-vote requirement typically needed to advance legislation in the Senate.

The Democrats are largely withholding their support for the GOP funding proposal, insisting on first extending the American Care Act (ACA) subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year, increasing health insurance premiums for millions of Americans.

Many Democrats have expressed concern that merely agreeing to hold a vote on the subsidies after the government reopens is not enough to ensure Republicans follow through on their word to engage in good-faith negotiations over extending the subsidies.

But Fetterman said he thinks Republicans want a solution to the expiring subsidies for their constituents as well.

“I do believe many, many of their constituents are going to be impacted by the premiums. And I do believe many of them, or at least enough of them, are going to be willing to figure out a way to fix this,” Fetterman said.

A group of front-line House Republicans on Tuesday called on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to “immediately” address the expiring enhanced ObamaCare tax credits — once the government shutdown ends. 

An analysis by KFF found that most ACA market enrollees, 77 percent, or 18.7 million of the 24.3 million enrollees, live in states won by President Trump in the 2024 election. These states received more premium tax credits and saw more enrollment growth than others. 

A KFF survey found that 78 percent of adults said they think Congress should extend the enhanced tax credits for the ACA marketplace. This included 92 percent of Democrats, 82 percent of independents and 59 percent of Republicans.