Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
By Opting For Secrecy, GOP Dodged Headaches Transparency Would Have Brought
Politico: Secrecy Boosts GOP’s Obamacare Repeal Push
Senate Republicans are closer than ever to voting to repeal Obamacare after three months of work that’s unparalleled in its secrecy and speed. They’re unapologetic, though. Because so far, it’s working. The closed-door deliberations, which have left even some GOP senators in the dark, have prompted widespread charges of hypocrisy and even a fair amount of heartburn within a party that railed for seven years against Democrats’ rush to pass their 2010 health care reform law. (Cancryn, 6/20)
Bloomberg: GOP Health Bill Kept Secret From Senators Assigned To Write It
One of the Senate Republicans charged with negotiating an Obamacare replacement expressed frustration Tuesday with the secret process, saying that even he hasn’t seen the proposal set to be released in two days for a possible floor vote next week. ... A week or so to examine the bill isn’t enough, said [Utah Senator Mike] Lee in a video posted on his Facebook page. As one of about a dozen members of a health-care working group, he criticized the closely held process of drafting the measure. (Litvan, 6/20)
CQ Roll Call: GOP Senators Wait To See Republican Health Bill Text
Republican senators say they expect to see the text of their party’s health care bill within days, although it’s still far from clear what it will contain. Discussions continue about proposals, including the approach for reducing federal Medicaid payments. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said he expects to have a discussion draft of legislation to revamp the 2010 health care law available on Thursday, and the Senate will likely proceed to the measure next week, assuming a Congressional Budget Office estimate is complete. (Young, 6/20)
The Hill: Senate Republicans Criticize Own Party’s Healthcare Process
Several Senate Republicans are criticizing their own party for negotiating and writing an ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bill largely behind closed doors and without input from Democrats. “Healthcare is such an important thing. I think we should have debated it in open, in committee hearings, have both sides bring in witnesses,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said Tuesday. (Sullivan, 6/20)
Politico: 11 Times Republicans Said Obamacare Process Was Too Secretive
Senate Republicans have come under fire from Democrats and even some in their own party for crafting their Obamacare replacement plan in secret, without public hearings to debate the legislation they have promised to voters for years. But not long ago, leaders in the Republican Party skewered President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress for writing the Affordable Care Act "behind closed doors" and in "smoke-filled rooms," as Vice President Mike Pence, at the time a lawmaker from Indiana, put it. (Lahut, Siu and Tesfamichael, 6/20)
Politico: Senate Democrats Go Searching For GOP Obamacare Bill
Senate Democrats are struggling against an invisible enemy — the GOP’s still-secret Obamacare repeal plan. So on Tuesday, three of them decided to take a field trip to hunt for it. Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Brian Schatz of Hawaii headed across the Hill to the Congressional Budget Office, located in Southwest Washington about a 10-minute drive from the Capitol, in what they acknowledged would be a fruitless quest for a copy of the health care bill that Republicans expect to bring to a vote as soon as next week. (Schor and Kim, 6/20)
