It’s feeding time for the animals on this property outside Nashville, Tennessee. An albino raccoon named Cricket reaches through the wires of its cage to grab an animal cracker, an appetizer treat right before the evening meal. “Cricket is blind,” said Robert Sory, who is trying to open a nonprofit animal sanctuary along with his wife, Emily. “A lot of our animals come to us with issues.” The menagerie in Thompson’s Station includes Russian foxes, African porcupines, emus, bobcats, and some well-fed goats. The Sorys are passionate about their pets and seem to put the animals’ needs before their own. Both Robert and Emily started 2026 without health insurance. Robert had been covered through a marketplace plan subsidized through the Affordable Care Act. His share of the monthly premiums was $0. When he looked up the rates for 2026, he saw that a barebones “bronze”-level plan would cost him at least $70 a month. He decided to forgo coverage altogether. “When you don’t have any income coming in, it doesn’t matter how cheap it is,” he said. “It’s not affordable.” Dumping Coverage Marketplace plans from the Affordable Care Act no longer feel very affordable to many people, because Congress did not extend a package of enhanced subsidies that expired at the end of 2025. Last week, the House did pass legislation to extend the expired subsidies, and negotiations have moved to the Senate. Without a deal, an estimated 4.8 million will go without coverage this year. But even without a health…
