Republicans Expecting Bad News From CBO’s Coverage And Costs Analysis
The Congressional Budget Office is expected to release its projections on the Republicans' new health care plan as early as Monday.
The Associated Press:
Republicans Brace For Downbeat CBO Analysis Of Health Bill
Republicans pushing a plan to dismantle Barack Obama’s health care law are bracing for a Congressional Budget Office analysis widely expected to conclude that fewer Americans will have health coverage under the proposal, despite President Donald Trump’s promise of “insurance for everybody.” House Speaker Paul Ryan said he fully expects the CBO analysis, set to be released as early as Monday, to find less coverage since the GOP plan eliminates the government requirement to be insured. (Yen, 3/13)
Politico:
Budget Referee May Call Foul On Obamacare Repeal
The fate of Obamacare may lie in the hands of a number-crunching Republican appointee whose bottom line might single-handedly blow up the GOP quest to repeal and replace it. Congressional Budget Office Director Keith Hall was handpicked two years ago by top Republicans in Congress— including now Health and Human Service Secretary Tom Price — to lead a nonpartisan office that will soon release its estimate of how many Americans the Republican health care bill will cover and whether it shrinks or balloons the federal deficit. (Pradhan, 3/10)
In other national health care news —
The Washington Post:
GOP Infighting Over Health Care, Other Issues Belies Victory
Less than 24 hours after Donald Trump had won the White House, House Speaker Paul Ryan triumphantly proclaimed the start of a new era of Republican leadership that would “hit the ground running.” Six weeks into Trump’s administration, Republicans are running — just in different directions. As congressional leaders move forward with efforts to undo former President Barack Obama’s health care law, conservative activists and GOP lawmakers are slamming the proposal as “Obamacare lite,” ‘’Obamacare 2.0” and “RINOcare” — RINO standing for Republicans In Name Only, a term of derision. (Lerer and Beaumont, 3/13)
Politico:
Democrats To Turn Obamacare Attacks Against GOP In 2018
The past four election cycles, Democrats have been battered and bruised by political attacks over Obamacare. Now, they say, the time has finally arrived to take the fight to Republicans. (Everett and Caygle, 3/12)
The New York Times:
The G.O.P.’s High-Risk Strategy For Health Law Repeal
President Trump and House Republicans are pressing forward with a high-risk strategy to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, disregarding the views of medical professionals and potentially imperiling the party’s political future in conservative states where many voters stand to lose their health care. The effort could cause upheaval in an already roiled insurance market next year, as Republicans face voters for the first time with Mr. Trump in the White House — though that turmoil would happen only if the plans manage to clear a divided Senate. (Pear and Kaplan, 3/11)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration Officials Defend GOP Health Bill Amid Party Disagreement
Trump administration officials sought to buck up support for House Republican plans to overhaul the Affordable Care Act on Sunday amid vocal dissension within the party about the measure. “We strongly support the plan,” Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price said on NBC’s Meet the Press, adding it would bring coverage to more people without raising costs. “I firmly believe nobody will be worse off financially in the process that we’re going through.” (Harrison and Harris, 3/12)
The Wall Street Journal:
Donald Trump Plays Background Role In Health-Care Battle
The course of Donald Trump’s presidency will be defined by his ability to seal a deal to rework the U.S. health-care system, but so far he has outsourced the job of hammering out the details to about a dozen Republican leaders and White House advisers while he serves in the background as a pitchman. (Radnofsky and Bender, 3/10)
The Washington Post:
Sleeper Issue Of Medicaid’s Future Could Prove Health-Care Plans’ Stumbling Block
As House Republicans hurtle toward shifting the nation’s health-care system onto a more conservative path, nearly lost so far in the roiling debate over their plans is the profound impact they would have on insurance for the nation’s poorest and most vulnerable residents. The proposed American Health Care Act would break with the government’s half-century-old compact with states in helping to finance Medicaid, which covers 68 million low-income people, including children, pregnant women and those who are elderly or disabled. (Goldstein and Eilperin, 3/12)
The Wall Street Journal:
GOP Health Plan Risks Backlash From Seniors
House Republicans’ health-care proposal is running into a new political problem: opposition from older people. One day after House GOP leaders unveiled their plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, AARP, the politically potent advocacy group for Americans over 50 years old, came out in opposition. (Peterson and Hackman, 3/11)
The Washington Post:
Trump Said No Americans Would Lose Coverage Under Obamacare Repeal. Paul Ryan Won’t Make That Promise.
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) said Sunday that he doesn’t know how many Americans would lose coverage under his proposal to revise the Affordable Care Act, which is under fire from fellow Republicans, AARP and virtually every sector of the U.S. health-care industry. (Snell, 3/12)