Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Do The Math, Baby': Senators Seem To Have Secured 60 Votes For Bipartisan Health Bill
The Associated Press: Bipartisan Plan To Curb Health Premiums Gets Strong Support
A bipartisan proposal to calm churning health insurance markets gained momentum Thursday when enough lawmakers rallied behind it to give it potentially unstoppable Senate support. But its fate remained unclear as some Republicans sought changes that could threaten Democratic backing. (Werner and Fram, 10/19)
The Hill: 24 Senators Co-Sponsor Bipartisan ObamaCare Deal
The bipartisan deal to stabilize ObamaCare’s markets has 24 co-sponsors, Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) announced Thursday. Twelve Republicans and 12 Democrats signed on to the bill, which would continue ObamaCare's insurer subsidies for two years and give states more flexibility to waive ObamaCare rules. (Hellmann, 10/19)
Los Angeles Times: Senators Push Forward With Bipartisan Obamacare Fix — And Trump's Encouragement
Among those backing the bill, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), said she not only supports the policy, but the opportunity it provides for Congress to show, "at a time when things are a little tense ... that we can come together. We can demonstrate the ability to govern." (Mascaro, 10/19)
The Hill: Key Senate Republican Warns GOP To Change Course On ObamaCare
Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) on Thursday told GOP colleagues bluntly that their efforts to repeal ObamaCare have failed and urged them to change course. Alexander said Republicans need to come up with a new path on health care after holding dozens of votes over the years to repeal ObamaCare and always ending in failure. (Bolton, 10/19)
The New York Times: Will Mitch McConnell Help His Friend Get A Health Care Deal?
Mitch McConnell and Lamar Alexander go way back. The two Southern Republicans met in Washington in 1969 when Mr. Alexander was a promising young aide at the Nixon White House and Mr. McConnell an up-and-coming legislative assistant to Senator Marlow W. Cook of Kentucky. The story goes that Senator Howard H. Baker Jr. suggested to Mr. Alexander, his fellow Tennessean, that he should look up Mr. McConnell, that he was a “smart young man and I think you’d like him.” A nearly 50-year friendship and political alliance was born. (Hulse, 10/19)
Meanwhile, some senators are still seeking tweaks —
Reuters: Two Republican Senators Seek To Add Flexibility To Bipartisan Health Bill
Republican U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy said on Thursday they were working with Republican Senator Ron Johnson and members of the House of Representatives to add more "flexibility provisions" to a proposed bipartisan bill to stabilize the healthcare insurance market in the short term. (10/19)
The Hill: Graham, Cassidy Trying To Move New ObamaCare Deal To The Right
Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) say they are working to make changes to a bipartisan health-care deal to make it more likely to win favor in the House. Graham and Cassidy, authors of a failed bill to repeal and replace ObamaCare earlier this year, are supporting a bipartisan measure aimed at stabilizing ObamaCare, but they are also looking for changes to move the proposal to the right. (Sullivan, 10/19)
Politico Pro: Johnson Seeks Conservative Twist On Obamacare Stabilization
Sen. Ron Johnson is trying to write a bill to fund Obamacare’s cost-sharing payments that he hopes will appeal to conservatives skeptical of the Senate's bipartisan stabilization effort. (Haberkorn, 10/19)
Cleveland Plain Dealer: Short-Term Obamacare Agreement Lacks Support From Ohio's Rob Portman, For Now
Ohio U.S. Sen. Rob Portman said Thursday he doesn't yet support efforts to restore money to insurance companies under the Affordable Care Act, saying the legislation still doesn't do enough to reduce insurance premiums and help Ohioans. Even if the money was restored, he said, premiums for ACA policies would rise by an average of 23 percent next year in Ohio. (Koff, 10/19)
WBUR: Sure, There's A Health Care Deal. That Doesn't Mean It Can Pass
A bipartisan coalition of 24 senators — 12 Republicans and 12 Democrats — has signed on to health care legislation to prop up the individual insurance market and keep premiums down. ...But questions remain over when it might actually get a vote, as well as whether President Trump and House Republicans would bring the bill over the finish line. (Davis, 10/19)
And in more news —
Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Leaders Downbeat On Compromise ACA Fix Bill
Healthcare leaders gathered [in Arizona] for Modern Healthcare's second annual Leadership Symposium have grown pessimistic about the prospect for passing legislation that would stabilize the insurance exchanges for next year's open enrollment season—now just two weeks away. President Donald Trump's sudden reversal on support for the compromise legislation crafted by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) cast a pall over a meeting where the nearly 100 top officials are discussing leadership challenges during a time of "disruption, complexity and uncertainty." (Goozner, 10/19)
The Associated Press: Q&A: New Health Bill Offers Stability, Respite On Premiums
The bipartisan health care bill formally proposed Thursday in Congress would help stabilize insurance markets up-ended by the fierce partisan battle over "Obamacare." For consumers, it offers a potential respite from the spiral of rising premiums and dwindling choice. (10/19)
Kaiser Health News: Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Whiplash
The bipartisan leaders of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee this week agreed on a bill they say could help stabilize the struggling health insurance exchanges. But despite compromises made by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), it’s still unclear whether Congress can pass the measure, particularly in time for the Affordable Care Act’s 2018 open enrollment season, which begins Nov. 1. (10/19)
