House Republicans vote to repeal Obamacare, again
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), widely expected to be the next House speaker, is urging the Senate to take up the House bill to repeal Obamacare that passed Friday.
House Republicans pushed forward with another vote to roll back the Affordable Care Act on Friday, passing a bill that would repeal several major pillars of President Obama’s landmark 2010 law, including the requirement that Americans have health coverage.
The legislation, the latest of more than 50 bills by congressional Republicans to repeal all or part of the health law, would also halt federal funding for Planned Parenthood.
The 240-189 vote will not change anything in the health law or Planned Parenthood, however, as Obama has indicated he would veto the bill if it ever reaches his desk.
It is not even clear that the bill will pass the Senate. Several Republicans, including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, have said the legislation does not repeal enough of what the GOP calls “Obamacare.”
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Internal Republican divisions over the bill threaten to derail a legislative strategy that GOP congressional leaders had hoped would allow Congress to force Obama to veto a repeal bill.
The current bill was passed through a process known as budget reconciliation, which will prevent Democrats in the Senate from filibustering the bill and allow Republicans to pass the law with a simple majority, if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) can come up with 51 votes.
In addition to repealing the individual mandate, the bill would also roll back the law’s tax on medical devices, the so-called employer mandate, a fund dedicated to public health and a board authorized by the law designed to control Medicare spending if it increases too quickly.
As is required of budget reconciliation legislation, the bill would lower the deficit, according to an independent analysis by the Congressional Budget Office.
It would also increase the number of Americans without health insurance by about 16 million people a year, budget analysts estimated.
Twitter: @noamlevey
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