White House Tacks Right On Health Plan To Woo Conservatives, Jeopardizing Support From Moderates

The New York Times: Ceding To One Side On Health Bill, Trump Risks Alienating Another
The White House stepped up its push on Tuesday to revive legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act by placating the most conservative House members, but the effort risked alienating more moderate Republicans whose votes President Trump needs just as much. Vice President Mike Pence met for about two hours on Tuesday night with lawmakers, including leaders of three groups of House Republicans. But lawmakers leaving the conclave in the basement of the Capitol said that no deal had been reached and that talks would continue on Wednesday. (Pear and Kaplan, 4/4)

Reuters: More Talks But No Decisions On Republican Push To Overhaul Healthcare
The lack of a resolution complicates a White House push for a House vote on a healthcare proposal before Friday, when lawmakers return to their districts for two weeks. “Good talk, good progress,” Pence told reporters without providing details. Freedom Caucus leader Mark Meadows said the meeting had focused on an amendment to create a "backstop" to ensure individuals with chronic illnesses in high-risk pools do not see spikes in insurance premium costs if other aspects of Obamacare, also known as the 2010 Affordable Care Act, are repealed. (Morgan and Abutaleb, 4/5)

The Washington Post: Republicans Try To Revive Health-Care Effort As Leaders Seek To Temper Expectations
The crux of the new proposal would be to allow states to seek exemptions from certain mandates established under the Affordable Care Act — including a requirement that insurers cover 10 “essential health benefits” as well as a prohibition on charging those with preexisting medical conditions more than the healthy. While the largely behind-the-scenes effort generated optimistic talk, no clear path has emerged toward House passage of the Republican bill. On Tuesday evening, key players said they were still waiting to see new proposals in writing, and some lawmakers said they were wary of rushing the process. (DeBonis and Wagner, 4/4)

The Associated Press: White House Effort To Revive Health Bill Gets Mixed Reaction
At the White House, Pence said he and President Donald Trump "remain confident that working with the Congress we will repeal and replace Obamacare. "But there was no evidence that the proposal won over any GOP opponents who'd forced Trump and party leaders to beat an unceremonious retreat on their bill on March 24, when they canceled a House vote that was doomed to failure. (Fram, 4/4)

Los Angeles Times: White House And GOP Aim For Do-Over Of Failed Obamacare Repeal, But Chances For Agreement Are Slim
[C]hances remain slim that Republican leaders can build consensus among the GOP factions — the conservative House Freedom Caucus and more centrist Tuesday Group — that doomed the last effort. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) lowered expectations that a deal could be struck soon. “Look, the president would like to see this done,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters during an off-camera briefing Tuesday. “I'm not going to raise expectations,” Spicer said. “But I think that there are more and more people coming to the table with more and more ideas about [how] to grow that vote.” (Mascaro and Bierman, 4/4)

Roll Call: House Democrats Who Opposed Obamacare Say Trump Never Approached Them
“We had no votes from the Democrats. They weren’t going to give us a single vote, so it’s a very difficult thing to do,” lamented President Donald Trump to reporters about 90 minutes after House Speaker Paul D. Ryan canceled the floor vote on the Republicans’ health care bill on March 24. But if Trump wanted Democrats, why didn’t he approach those who’d opposed President Barack Obama’s signature health care law in 2010? (Curry, 4/5)