Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
A Look At How It All Went Wrong: 'This Has Been Way More Difficult Than It Needs To Be'
The Washington Post: How The Push For A Senate Health-Care Vote Fell Apart Amid GOP Tensions
Sen. Dean Heller was sitting two seats away from President Trump and facing his grim-faced colleagues this week when he decided to crack a pointed joke. Heller — a square-jawed, sandy-haired moderate Republican — said the attack ads against him, paid for by a Trump-allied super PAC, should have used his own image instead of actor Matt Damon’s. There were scattered laughs, including a chuckle from Trump. But many of the Republican lawmakers lining tables in the East Room stayed mute. (Costa, Sullivan, Eilperin and Snell, 6/28)
The Washington Post: McConnell Is Known As A Deal-Closer, But He’s Never Done Policy This Big
For the past decade, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has forged a reputation as a closer on big deals. There was the Wall Street bailout just before the 2008 elections. There was the pact over the summer of 2011 to slash spending and avoid a federal default. And there was the 2012 New Year’s Eve “fiscal cliff” compromise to avoid huge tax increases. But this week, McConnell (R-Ky.) fell short in crafting a Republican plan to repeal portions of the Affordable Care Act and redraw vast amounts of Medicaid policy. Rather than suffer a humiliating defeat, McConnell told his GOP colleagues Tuesday that he would delay a vote until at least mid-July. (Kane, 6/28)
