For Some Republican Leaders, Repealing Without Replacing Is Cause For Caution

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, have doubts about the current strategy of repealing the health law quickly without a clear plan to move forward with a replacement. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican whose state pursued the measure's Medicaid expansion, also warned against this tactic.

The Hill: GOP Senator Warns Against Repealing ObamaCare Without Replacement

GOP Sen. Tom Cotton (Ark.) on Thursday warned his party not to repeal ObamaCare without a replacement ready to go. "I think it would not be the right path for us to repeal ObamaCare without laying out a path forward," Cotton said on MSNBC Thursday evening. "I think when we repeal ObamaCare, we need to have the solution in place moving forward. ... I do not think we can just repeal ObamaCare and say we'll give the answer two years from now." Republican leaders have vowed to vote on repealing ObamaCare immediately and delay the repeal until a replacement plan is ready. (Hellmann, 1/5)

Bloomberg: Senate GOP Jitters Grow On Obamacare Repeal With No Replacement

Republican plans to repeal Obamacare without detailing a replacement are hitting resistance from at least three GOP senators, which would be enough to scuttle the strategy party leaders devised to deliver quickly on a central promise from President-elect Donald Trump. Only one of the senators -- Rand Paul of Kentucky -- has so far said he plans to vote against the procedural gambit that sets up Obamacare repeal, citing unrelated budget concerns. Paul and two others are concerned that Republicans haven’t said yet how they would replace the health insurance scheme after repeal, with one of them also opposing the plan to defund Planned Parenthood as part of the repeal. (Dennis and Kapur, 1/5)

The Hill: Kasich Warns Republicans On ObamaCare Repeal

Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich warned his party's lawmakers against repealing ObamaCare without a replacement on Wednesday, noting that Ohioans have gained coverage from the Medicaid expansion in his state. Kasich, who ran for president last year, has long been a supporter of ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion, but his warning to Republicans about repeal on Wednesday was particularly forceful. (Sullivan, 1/5)

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