‘COSBY SHOW’ ACTOR MALCOLM-JAMAL WARNER DIES 3A THE
ACADIANA
ADVOCATE
T H E A C A D I A N A A D V O C AT E.C O M
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T u e s d ay, J u ly 22, 2025
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Prices rising on insurance maketplace
Rule changes affecting Affordable Care Act cost, availability BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer
WASHINGTON — Long before the recently enacted changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will be felt by the 1.86 million Louisianans on Medicaid, the new law likely will start pushing many Affordable Care Act beneficiaries off their private insurance, experts say. Myriad rule changes will even-
tually start touching many of the 785,000 Louisiana residents who enrolled in Medicaid as part of the expansion of the law dubbed “Obamacare.” More immediately, however, 292,994 self-employed or lowerincome Louisiana workers who acquired their insurance another way, through an Affordable Care Act marketplace, will have to pay dramatically higher prices when
they start applying Nov. 1 for their coverage next year. Insurers have filed for rate increases — at a median monthly cost of 15% more — for plans sold on the HealthCare.gov website, according to a Friday analysis by KFF, a San Francisco-based health policy research organization. A key part of the Affordable Care Act gives subsidies to buy insurance to people who make too
much money to qualify for Medicaid but financially struggle to buy private policies on their own. Generally, that’s defined as a household of four making between $48,226 and $66,625 annually but under some conditions up to $128,600. The state’s median household income is $60,023, about $20,000 below the national figure. The enhanced tax credits are scaled to income levels depending
DAILY HEAT INDEX RANGE
The heat index reflects how temperatures feel when combined with humidity.
TUESDAY
105 to 110
WEDNESDAY
100 to 105
THURSDAY
105 to 110
FRIDAY
100 to 106
Source: National Weather Service
HERE COMES THE SUN
on the healthcare insurance plan bought. Just like the private insurance bought through the workplace, different plans provide various options for coverage and thus range in price. In Louisiana, the Affordable Care Act credits made buying insurance easier for people who started making too much money and lost their Medicaid qualification, said Stacey Roussel, deputy director of Invest in Louisiana, a
ä See PRICES, page 6A
Trump releases FBI records on MLK Jr. Slain civil rights leader’s family opposes document dump BY BILL BARROW Associated Press
STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP
Damon McGregor, of Acadiana’s Premier Painting Specialist, paints while using a big umbrella hat to shield himself from the sun Monday at Charlie’s Saint Street Grocery and Deli.
Officials urge taking precautions as extreme heat settles in BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer
Severe heat has settled over much of south Louisiana this week, with temperatures expected to feel as hot as 110 degrees on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The National Weather Service in Lake Charles has issued a heat advisory from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday as forecasters predict heat indices between 105 and 110 degrees. The ad-
visory covers most of south Louisiana, including the cities of Lafayette and Lake Charles. Intense heat and humidity will persist through the end of the week, with Thursday’s heat index expected to range from 105 to 110 degrees and Friday’s from 100 to 106. Heat index values reflect how temperatures feel when combined with humidity. Health officials are urging residents, especially children, seniors
and anyone who works outdoors — especially those in industries such as construction, agriculture and public maintenance — to take precautions. The weather service recommends frequent breaks in the shade or air conditioning, drinking plenty of fluids, especially those with electrolytes, wearing loose-fitting, light clothing and never leaving people or pets in vehicles. Forecasters also said residents
ä See SUN, page 6A
The Trump administration has released records of the FBI’s surveillance of Martin Luther King Jr., despite opposition from the slain Nobel laureate’s family and the civil rights group that he led until his 1968 assassination. The digital document dump includes more than 240,000 pages of records that had been under a court-imposed seal since 1977, when the “We ask those FBI first gathered the who engage records and turned them with the release over to the National Arof these files chives and Records Adto do so with ministration. empathy, In a lengthy statement released Monday, King’s restraint, and two living children, Marrespect for tin III, 67, and Bernice, our family’s 62, said their father’s continuing assassination has been grief.” a “captivating public curiosity for decades.” STATEMENT But the pair emphasized FROM MARTIN the personal nature of the matter, urging that LUTHER KING JR.’S CHILDREN “these files must be viewed within their full historical context.” The Kings got advance access to the records and had their own teams reviewing them. Those efforts continued even as the government granted public access. It was not immediately clear Monday whether the documents would shed any new light on King’s life, the Civil Rights Movement or his murder. “As the children of Dr. King and Mrs. Coretta Scott King, his tragic death has been an intensely personal grief — a devastating
ä See RECORDS, page 4A
Federal food program cuts hit rural areas first, nonprofit warns BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL Staff writer
Cuts to federal programs since President Donald Trump took office led to large reductions in available food to anti-hunger organizations like Second Harvest in Lafayette. Yet, demand hasn’t decreased throughout Acadiana, Paul Scelfo, chief regional officer for Second
WEATHER HIGH 94 LOW 76 PAGE 6A
Harvest, said. With future cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, looming and unpredictable, Scelfo added, rural communities will be impacted the most if the organization is forced to contract. What those cuts have translated to is a 30% reduction in the food the organization was receiving. Overall, Second Harvest is expecting a 4- to 5-millionpound reduction in food over the year.
“What we’ve seen through the Department of Agriculture cuts and USDA funding is that some of the loads have been reduced tremendously,” Scelfo said. In March, the Trump administration cut around $1 billion from U.S. Department of Agriculture programs that helped local food banks and schools
ä See CUTS, page 4A
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Workers hand out food at Second Harvest Food Bank ahead of Hurricane Francine in 2024. STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK
101ST yEAR, NO. 22