Washington
The flagging Republican effort to reshape the nation’s health care system picked up steam on Wednesday, as GOP leaders tried to address concerns about people with pre-existing medical conditions. But independent analysts remained skeptical that the new proposal would fully address the needs of at-risk patients who receive coverage guarantees under the Affordable Care Act, underscoring the controversial nature of the Republican effort.
Republican leaders huddled in the office of House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., Wednesday evening to figure out the next steps after a whirlwind day at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. Several said they would hold a vote this week only if they felt certain it could pass — meaning they now believe they have the votes.
Exiting the relatively brief leadership meeting House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., guaranteed victory.
“Do we have the votes? Yes. Will we pass it? Yes,” he told reporters.
Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., an influential Republican, was putting the finishing touches on his proposal to provide more financial assistance — $8 billion over five years — to people with pre-existing medical conditions. Those people are at risk of losing protections under the GOP plan, which seeks to repeal and replace major parts of the ACA.
Just a day earlier, Upton said he could not support the Republican plan because of pre-existing conditions. But he sounded an optimistic note after sketching out his fix Wednesday and meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House.
Upton said Trump called him Tuesday afternoon. The two had a “good give and take,” he said and Trump grew “a little angry” when he said he could not support the bill. But eventually, he said, they came to an agreement on his amendment.
Rep. Billy Long, R-Mo., who like Upton was against the bill earlier this week because of preexisting conditions, was also in the White House meeting. Now supportive of the bill, he cautioned: “There’s still work to be done on the votes, I believe.”
Upton’s amendment was not met with resistance by the House Freedom Caucus, a key bloc of conservatives whose opposition to an earlier version of the health care bill led GOP leaders to yank the measure.
Under the GOP plan, states could opt out of the parts of the ACA, meaning that people with pre-existing conditions could be denied coverage or charged more.