House GOP Leaders Move to Tweak Health-Care Bill
21 March 2017 - 09:44AM
Dow Jones News
By Kristina Peterson and Stephanie Armour
House Republican leaders moved Monday to adjust their bill
dismantling the Affordable Care Act, but whether those changes
would draw enough wavering Republicans remained unclear just days
before the full chamber is scheduled to vote on the
legislation.
"We've spent the last week and weekend listening to our
colleagues both from the House and the Senate about ways we can
improve this legislation, " House Ways and Means Committee Chairman
Kevin Brady (R., Texas) said. He said GOP leaders would later
Monday release later a package of changes to the bill.
The bill repeals much of the 2010 health-care law and replaces
it with tax credits aimed at helping people afford insurance. A
vote in the full House is expected Thursday. GOP leaders say they
are confident of passage, but they are still making efforts to
ensure Republican support.
President Donald Trump is intensifying his lobbying, with an
appearance scheduled Tuesday at the weekly closed-door meeting of
House Republicans. It will be Mr. Trump's first huddle with all
House Republicans since his inauguration.
Republicans can lose no more than 21 GOP votes to clear the bill
in the House, where no Democrats are expected to vote for it. Mr.
Brady said he expected the changes Monday evening would include
concessions won by lawmakers belonging to Republican Study
Committee, a group of conservative House members. Some of those
lawmakers met Friday with Mr. Trump at the White House.
To answer their concerns, the bill will be tweaked to permit
states to impose a work requirement on some Medicaid beneficiaries.
The bill will also be changed to give states more options in how
they receive federal Medicaid funding, which would be curtailed
under the House GOP plan.
GOP leaders are also expected to include a measure sought by New
York Republicans intended to largely stop the state from raising
Medicaid funding through county taxes. Rep. Chris Collins (R.,
N.Y.) said the change was popular, since it could lower property
taxes people pay, building support for the health bill among the
New York delegation.
GOP leaders are also expected to adjust the bill's centerpiece
tax credits, which some lawmakers worry aren't generous enough to
enable low-income and older people to buy coverage. Under the
current bill, the credits start at $2,000 for those under age 30
and increase up to $4,000 for those 60 and older. GOP leaders aim
to provide extra relief for those between the ages of 50 and 65,
when people can enroll in Medicare.
They are also weighing a speedier start date for repealing some
of the ACA's taxes.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office is expected to
release an updated projection before Thursday's vote on the
legislation's budget impact and its effect on the number of people
with insurance. The office last week estimated that the bill would
cause 24 million fewer people to be insured over a decade compared
with the ACA.
Write to Kristina Peterson at kristina.peterson@wsj.com and
Stephanie Armour at stephanie.armour@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 20, 2017 18:29 ET (22:29 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.