Free Republic

"Prior to this year, the House voted to repeal Obamacare more than 50 times ---when it was clear that President Obama would veto the bill. The problem we are facing is that some of the people who voted for repeal 50 times will not vote for repeal when it counts, when it is "our moment in time," with Republicans in control of Congress and the presidency." --Rep Dave Brat "This has been my complaint since before Obamacare became law. Nothing I’ve seen addresses the problem of increased costs of medical care. All these bills just shift the rising costs from...

Rep. Dave Brat is my rep. Yesterday, he posted an article to his constituents on his Facebook page. There are a lot of rumors & "who shot John" accusations flying around, but here it is straight from a Freedom Caucus & Conservative mouth as to what happened. There are a lot of terrific comments in this article and it's well worth reading. Personally, Dave Brat speaks for me ...... it was a great day when Eric Cantor was deposed from his self-assumed throne & I am grateful every day for Dave Brat. So far he has acted in the best...

In 2015, Congress passed Obamacare repeal. Now, a replica bill has sat unaddressed in committee since March 8th and there’s a path to getting it to a floor vote quickly. The Trump spin mill has been in overdrive since House Speaker Paul Ryan pulled the abysmal first attempt of the new administration and Congress at the promised “repeal and replacement” of Obamacare. The Trump administration and the media sold the American Health Care Act as the last best hope for repealing Obamacare, which is a complete joke. The idea that Republicans in the House and Senate, who have largely run...

A no vote on RYANcare/GOPcare is a vote FOR constitutional government. Obamacare, RYANcare, RINOcare, GOPcare, Hillarycare, Trumpcare or ANY form of federal government mandated health care package is UNCONSTITUTIONAL! The constitution clearly reserves health care and health care insurance to the states and the PEOPLE! The founders did not establish the federal government to be a charity or to "care for" the personal needs of the citizens. The founders never intended to create a welfare state! The constitution was intended to severely RESTRICT the powers of the federal government and to leave most governing powers to the states and the...

H. R. 596 To repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 4, 2015 Received; read the first time February 5, 2015 Read the second time and placed on the calendar AN ACT To repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States...

The GOP has had 7 years to work on the repeal of Obamacare and now that they have full control, they still can’t seem to get anything done. We want Obamacare repealed now! NBC reports: The House of Representatives delayed its vote on repealing and replacing parts of the Affordable Care Act after Republican leaders failed to rally enough support to pass the bill, sources told CNBC. The GOP House caucus will meet at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday to discuss its path forward, NBC News reported. A vote on the legislation is still possible on Friday, NBC said. The...

As I write this, the House is pushing for a floor vote on the American Health Care Act. It “hangs in the balance” as some mainstream media news outlets are saying, but that doesn’t really paint the picture properly. In reality, it hangs over the GOP’s head in two major ways. If it passes, things get really interesting in the Senate. There, the GOP cannot afford more than a couple of internal detractors and in the current form, there are more than enough. We haven’t seen the final version, but unless major changes were made, it’s very possible it could...

President Trump and the conservative group called the Freedom Caucus have reached an agreement in principle on repealing and replacing Obamacare. If the deal holds, it should bring at least some conservatives on board the House bill.  But opposition to the legislation runs deep on the right, and the modest changes agreed to might not be enough to swing a majority of Republicans in the bill's favor. The Hill: "I think what we're trying to do now is make sure that our agreement is actually something that can be executed in a way that passes the Senate," he added....

A good time to familiarize yourself with critical procedural rules in the other chamber while you’re trying to pass the most momentous bill of Trump’s presidency is obviously the night before you bring it to the floor, I think we can all agree. BREAK: House leadership now open to changes to the AHCA after learning new info about EHBs/the reconciliation process, per leadership aide— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) March 22, 2017 I mentioned the reconciliation problem in this morning’s post. The GOP’s dilemma, and the reason for the weird “three stage” repeal that Trump and Ryan keep mentioning, is that...

Obama added it's silly to just repeal his law. He also said it's not in a "death spiral" because most people haven't seen their premiums rise. Obama called on people who believed in the fight to pass the law to stand up and defend it against repeal attempts. "Americans who love their country still have the power to change it," he said.

Obamacare’s basic construct is to take control of private health plans and convert them into off-budget extensions of federal programs. As one of the law’s supporters explained back in 2010, its design “transforms health insurance into a public accommodation,” and turns private health insurance into “a regulated industry … that, in its restructured form, will therefore take on certain characteristics of a public utility.” The architects of Obamacare implemented that construct by imposing on private health plans new coverage requirements such as “essential benefits,” “preventive services,” and limits on plan cost-sharing. They also enforced cross subsidies—such as limits on age...

Paul Ryan got what he wanted from the House Budget Committee — but also got a warning shot across the bow as well. The American Health Care Act (AHCA) passed on a narrow vote, but not before Republican conservatives offered some resistance to it. The final vote may have been a managed outcome. Kasie Hunt explains that they expected more debate today in the committee and had counted four Republicans on the panel as against the AHCA or leaning toward a no. Four Republican defections would have resulted in a tie, but a plea from the chair may have made...

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) could not say on Wednesday where he got the information that "thousands will die" if Obamacare is repealed. Sanders made the claim while speaking with CNN's Jake Tapper but could not provide any specific sources that backed his assertion, instead referring to "studies that have been done.

Noah Wall, the national director of campaigns for FreedomWorks, joined Breitbart News Daily SiriusXM host Alex Marlow on Tuesday to discuss the FreedomWorks Day of Action rally scheduled for Wednesday in opposition to the Republican Obamacare replacement plan. Concerning a full repeal of Obamacare, Wall said, “We’ve been promised this in 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016, and these were not lighthearted promises. These were very powerful promises from members of Congress and the U.S. Senate across the political spectrum of Republicans.” “Lo and behold,” added Wall, “the voters give Republicans Congress, they give them the Senate, and they give them...

Sen. Tom Cotton said Tuesday that it's vital for Republicans to get legislation repealing Obamacare right on the first try because he doesn't believe there are going to be three steps to the process, as proponents have outlined. "There is no three-step plan. That is just political talk," Mr. Cotton, Arkansas Republican, told radio host Hugh Hewitt. Republicans say there's only so much legislation they can get through the first time around under agreed-to budget rules. Step two would then involve regulatory changes, followed by more legislation. Mr. Cotton said step two could be subject to court challenges and that...

Republicans in the House and Senate wanted to see a score from the Congressional Budget Office on the American Health Care Act before casting a vote either way. The CBO obliged today, giving AHCA backers good news for budget hawks, but potentially bad news on the political front. Despite assurances that the effort would not leave Americans behind, CBO estimates that fourteen million Americans would be added to the rolls of the uninsured, while the AHCA saves the federal government $337 billion in deficit spending over the next decade: CBO and JCT estimate that enacting the legislation would reduce...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fourteen million Americans would lose coverage next year under House Republican legislation remaking the nation's health care system, and that figure would grow to 24 million by 2026, Congress' nonpartisan budget analysts projected Monday. The figures dealt a blow to a GOP drive already under fire from both parties and large segments of the medical industry.

Ignore the grandstanding on Capitol Hill and the noise coming from town-hall protests around the nation. The Republican bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare will boost your chances of getting a job and cut your tax bill, not to mention your insurance costs. The repeal bill — called the American Health Care Act — also will stave off a tidal wave of future Medicaid spending that threatens to drown the states and Uncle Sam in red ink. Here’s how. No more penalties. If you’re among the 8 million people getting whacked with a tax penalty for not enrolling in an...

The only way I'd be happy with a non repeal of Obamacare is if the president and the secretary can snip the unconstitutional monopolistic strings that prohibit free enterprise from providing competing solutions. Someone suggested leaving Obamacare basically intact for those who choose to provide or subscribe to it, but allow new free market solutions to rise up and compete. That's not a bad idea to break the stalemate. My understanding is the Obamacare law leaves many decisions for the president and the HHS secretary to make. During the rollout and throughout the remaining years of Obama's term, the president...

President Donald Trump has more than the Democratic opposition to worry about with his proposed American Health Care Act. Conservatives are pushing hard against it, too, despite AHCA proponents' attempts to persuade members of the House Freedom Caucus with an ad campaign and some schmoozing in Washington. "Right now, I think there is a charm offensive going on," Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told CBS host John Dickerson on Sunday's "Face the Nation." "Everybody is being nice to everybody, because they want us to vote for this, but we are not going to vote for it." Conservatives will fight President Trump's...