Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
After The Recess, Doubts Over Health Plan Only Continue To Grow
The New York Times: G.O.P. Support Of Senate Health Repeal Erodes During Break
A week that Senate Republicans had hoped would mobilize conservatives and shore up support for their measure to repeal the Affordable Care Act instead ended with eroding enthusiasm, as usually reliable Republican senators from red states blanched at its impact on rural communities. With Congress set to return on Monday after a week’s recess, Republican lawmakers are increasingly aware that their seven-year promise to dismantle President Barack Obama’s largest policy achievement is deeply imperiled. (Steinhauer and Pear, 7/8)
Politico: Time Away From Washington Deepens GOP Misgivings About Health Plan
It was a grim week for the Republican effort to repeal Obamacare. The few GOP senators who hosted town hall meetings over the Fourth of July recess were hammered by constituents for trying to undo the health care law. Reliable conservatives like Sens. Jerry Moran and John Hoeven outlined their opposition to the current version of the Senate repeal bill. Even Majority Leader Mitch McConnell acknowledged at a luncheon back home in Kentucky that the effort might fail. (Haberkorn, 7/7)
The Washington Post: Republicans Increasingly Uncertain Of A Legislative Victory Before August
The Republican Congress returns to Capitol Hill this week increasingly uncertain that a major legislative victory is achievable in the three weeks before lawmakers leave town for their month-long summer recess. Most immediately, GOP leaders and President Trump are under enormous pressure to approve health-care legislation — but that is only the beginning. Virtually every piece of their ambitious legislative agenda is stalled, according to multiple Republicans inside and outside of Congress. (DeBonis and O'Keefe, 7/8)
Reuters: Republicans Voice Growing Doubts On U.S. Healthcare Bill's Fate
Republicans expressed increasing pessimism on Sunday about the prospects for the healthcare bill in the U.S. Senate aimed at rolling back Obamacare as lawmakers prepared to return from a week-long recess. One prominent Republican lawmaker, Senator John McCain, said he thought the Republican bill would probably fail. (Abutaleb, 7/9)
The Associated Press: 2 GOP Senators Suggest Bill To Repeal Health Care Law 'Dead'
The initial GOP bill to repeal and replace the nation's health law is probably "dead" and President Donald Trump's proposal to just repeal it appears to be a "non-starter," two moderate Republican senators indicated Sunday as their party scrambled to salvage faltering legislation. "We don't know what the plan is," said Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. "Clearly, the draft plan is dead. Is the serious rewrite plan dead? I don't know." Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said it may now be time for Republicans to come up with a new proposal with support from Democrats. (Yen, 7/10)
Arizona Republic: McCain Predicts Senate Health-Care Bill Will Fail
Sen. John McCain on Sunday warned his fellow Republicans not to shut out Democrats in the Senate's health-care deliberations, which he predicted will fail... During the television appearance, McCain also scoffed at President Donald Trump for suggesting that the United States and Russia could work together on cybersecurity and criticized Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for saying that maybe the Russians have "got the right approach and we've got the wrong approach" with regard to achieving objectives in Syria. (Nowicki, 7/9)
The Associated Press: Trump Tweets Push For Healthcare Bill As 2 More GOP Senators Say It's 'Dead'
President Trump used Twitter on Sunday afternoon to urge Republicans to follow through on their pledge to get rid of the healthcare law pushed by his predecessor. (7/9)
The Hill: GOP Pessimism Rising On ObamaCare Repeal
The gloomy outlook highlights why McConnell had sought to finish work on the repeal-and-replace legislation before the July 4 recess. (Carney, 7/8)
Bloomberg: Senate Health Bill Fails To Pick Up Support After Week Of Recess
Senate Republican leaders head into a difficult fight this week to win support for their health-care legislation after returning from a recess where some GOP lawmakers fielded angry complaints from constituents about the measure. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has made little progress on winning over his party’s holdouts as he negotiates with them over revisions to a bill he proposed last month that combines tax cuts with deep reductions in health spending. Changes under consideration include ditching a repeal of Obamacare’s tax increases on the wealthy, revising Medicaid cuts and adding more spending to stabilize premium costs in the individual insurance market, according to a GOP aide who requested anonymity. (Litvan, 7/10)
Bloomberg: Republican Senators At Odds Ahead Of Push For Health Bill
Senate Republicans clashed Sunday about the path forward for their stalled health-care bill, with passage of any plan before the August congressional recess in doubt and rival factions trying to pull it in opposite directions. Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” declared an earlier Republican leadership plan “dead” and suggested turning to a different bill that he drafted with Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine. He put the odds of passing a bill in July at “50-50.” (Dennis, 7/9)
