For GOP, Political Incentive Is ‘As Much Of A Reason As The Substance’ To Pass Repeal Bill
The driving force behind this last-ditch attempt for many lawmakers it the simple fact that they promised their constituents they'd make it happen. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell intends to bring the legislation to the floor for a vote next week -- but only if he's sure it will pass.
The Associated Press:
Republicans See Political Necessity In Health Care Effort
It's divisive and difficult, but the Republican drive to erase the Obama health care overhaul has gotten a huge boost from one of Washington's perennial incentives: Political necessity. In the two months since Senate Republicans lost their initial attempt to scuttle President Barack Obama's statute, there's fresh evidence GOP voters are adamant that the party achieve its long-promised goal of dismantling that law. This includes conservative firebrand Roy Moore forcing a GOP primary runoff against Sen. Luther Strange, R-Ala., who's backed by President Donald Trump, and lots of money, plus credible primary challenges facing Republican Sens. Jeff Flake of Arizona and Nevada's Dean Heller. (Fram, 9/21)
The New York Times:
How The Latest Obamacare Repeal Plan Would Work
The latest Republican proposal to undo the Affordable Care Act would grant states much greater flexibility and all but guarantee much greater uncertainty for tens of millions of people. The legislation, proposed by two Senate Republicans, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, would not only reduce the amount of federal funding for coverage over the next decade, but also give states wide latitude to determine whom to cover and how. The result is a law that would be as disruptive as many of the Republicans’ previous proposals, but whose precise impact is the hardest to predict. (Abelson and Sanger-Katz, 9/20)
NPR:
Republicans Try One Last Effort To Repeal Obamacare
Graham-Cassidy essentially deconstructs all of the major programs created by the Affordable Care Act, gathers up the money and hands it over to states to run their own health care programs. It gets rid of both the subsidies that help people buy individual health insurance policies and the reimbursements to insurance companies for offering price breaks on copayments and deductibles to the lowest-income customers. It rolls back the Obamacare Medicaid expansion that was adopted by 31 states and Washington, D.C., and it eliminates the Basic Health Program that was created under the ACA and implemented in New York and Minnesota. (Kodjak, 9/19)
Stat:
Abortion Coverage Would Be Restricted Under New GOP Health Care Plan
The GOP health care overhaul barreling toward a possible Senate vote this month would restrict abortion coverage for some people as early as next year. Most of the major changes included in the package, from Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, wouldn’t take effect until 2020. That’s when the legislation would end the subsidies currently available to consumers who don’t get their health insurance through their job or a government program. It’s also when the legislation would overhaul — and cut — government contributions to state Medicaid programs. (Mershon, 9/20)
The Hill:
GOP Takes Heavy Fire Over Pre-Existing Conditions
The new ObamaCare repeal measure from Senate Republicans would give states a way to repeal protections for people with pre-existing conditions, a controversial move that opponents of the bill are denouncing. The provision attracted widespread attention on Wednesday after late-night host Jimmy Kimmel blasted Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a lead author of the legislation. Kimmel said the senator is violating the “Jimmy Kimmel test,” which Cassidy coined as a way of saying that no one should be denied care because they can’t afford it. “This guy Bill Cassidy just lied right to my face,” Kimmel said. (Sullivan, 9/20)
The Washington Post:
McConnell Intends To Bring Repeal Bill To Senate Floor Next Week, Spokesman Says
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) plans to bring a bill to undo the Affordable Care Act to the Senate floor next week, a McConnell spokesman said Wednesday. His statement marked McConnell’s most concrete commitment yet to moving ahead with the bill from Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.). It signaled that a vote would be expected next week. (Sullivan, 9/20)
The Hill:
The Two Senators Who Will Likely Decide Fate Of ObamaCare Repeal
All eyes are on Sens. John McCain (Ariz.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) as Republicans try to approve a new ObamaCare repeal bill in the next 11 days. The two were among the three Republicans who sank the last GOP effort to repeal ObamaCare, and President Trump and his allies probably can’t afford to lose either if they are to win a vote next week. (Hellman, 9/20)
Politico:
The Unlikely Group Who Brought Obamacare Repeal Back To Life
Senate Republicans’ last-ditch attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare rests on the unlikely collaboration of a veteran senator who can’t stand health policy, a wonky freshman who has never passed major legislation and a former senator who lost his seat a decade ago. Together, Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum crafted the latest GOP repeal bill in hopes of delivering on the party’s seven-year-old campaign promise to repeal Obamacare. (Haberkorn and Bade, 9/21)
The New York Times:
‘Chuck And Nancy,’ Washington’s New Power Couple, Set Sights On Health Care
When Representative Nancy Pelosi, the House Democratic leader, introduced Chuck Schumer to members of her caucus this month, she warmed up the room with a well-worn joke about her Senate counterpart: “You know they say the most dangerous place in Washington is between Chuck and a camera.” Mr. Schumer’s love of the spotlight aside, it has been behind the scenes where “Chuck and Nancy,” as President Trump calls them, have forged what may be the most surprisingly potent partnership in Mr. Trump’s Washington. (Stolberg, 9/20)
The New York Times:
Insurers Come Out Swinging Against New Republican Health Care Bill
The health insurance industry, after cautiously watching Republican health care efforts for months, came out forcefully on Wednesday against the Senate’s latest bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, suggesting that its state-by-state block grants could create health care chaos in the short term and a Balkanized, uncertain insurance market. In the face of the industry opposition, Senate Republican leaders nevertheless said they would push for a showdown vote next week on the legislation, drafted by Senators Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. (Pear, 9/20)
The Washington Post Fact Checker:
Sen. Cassidy’s Rebuttal To Jimmy Kimmel: ‘More People Will Have Coverage’
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel attacked Cassidy over the health-care repeal plan crafted by Cassidy and Sens. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), Dean Heller (R-Nev.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) as a last-ditch effort to replace the Affordable Care Act. Kimmel asserted, among other things, that the proposed law “will kick about 30 million Americans off insurance. ”Firing back, Cassidy flatly stated that “more people will have coverage … There are more people who will be covered through this bill than under the status quo.” (Kessler, 9/21)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Critics Of GOP Health Bill Turn Jimmy Kimmel’s Tirade Into Political Weapon
As Senate Republicans promised to push their latest effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act to a vote next week, their Democratic counterparts sought Wednesday to take advantage of a late-night broadside by television host Jimmy Kimmel against a replacement plan. (Lochhead, 9/20)