Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
GOP House Leaders Are On Edge With Health Vote Gamble
The Associated Press: House Sets Risky Health Care Vote After Trump Demands It
In a gamble with monumental political stakes, Republicans set course for a climactic House vote on their health care overhaul after President Donald Trump claimed he was finished negotiating with GOP holdouts and determined to pursue the rest of his agenda, win or lose. House Speaker Paul Ryan set the showdown for Friday, following a nighttime Capitol meeting at which top White House officials told GOP lawmakers that Trump had decided the time for talk was over. (Fram and Alonso-Zaldivar, 3/24)
USA Today: Damn The Torpedoes: GOP Sets Friday Vote On Health Care Despite Opposition
Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., told reporters at the Capitol that Mulvaney’s message was: “The president needs this, the president has said he wants a vote tomorrow. If for any reason (it fails) we’re just going to move forward with additional parts of his agenda. This is our moment in time but the president is insisting on a vote one way or the other.” Collins said the message from the administration — Stephen Bannon, Reince Priebus and Kellyanne Conway also attended the meeting — was that negotiations were over and it was time to act. (Kelly, Collins and Shesgreen, 3/23)
Roll Call: House GOP Heads Into Health Care Vote ‘Between A Rock And A Hard Place’
The outcome of Friday’s House vote to partially repeal and replace the 2010 health care law is not certain, but one thing is: All parties to the Republican negotiations will walk away with some losses. ... the chips in this case are a group of conservative hardliners and moderate majority-makers (members leadership typically relies on to help pass bills) that have stood in opposition to bill before the latest round of changes. While at least a dozen of those Republicans have said since the final plan was announced Thursday evening that they remain “no” votes, several others appear to be wavering. (McPherson, 3/24)
News outlets note the difficulties GOP leaders have confronted in this week's negotiations are similar to the ones that dogged them during the Obama administration -
The Wall Street Journal: In Health-Law Fight, GOP Leaders Struggle To Reconcile Factions’ Needs
After years of making the repeal of the Affordable Care Act a signature issue, Republicans are struggling to deliver on the promise, floundering amid warring factions that neither President Donald Trump nor House Speaker Paul Ryan have been able to whip into line. ... They are confronting a thorny challenge that required two things in short supply among today’s Republican rank and file: a willingness to compromise or to defer to leadership. (Hook and Epstein, 3/23)
The Associated Press: New Congress, All-GOP, Same Political Divisions
With control of the White House and Senate and a commanding majority in the House, Republicans were supposed to brush off any challenge from the hardline Freedom Caucus and work their will with impunity. But something happened on the way to governing. Now, House Republican leaders are struggling with the same divisions that plagued them under President Barack Obama. (Ohlemacher, 3/24)
Politico: Trump Vs. The Freedom Caucus
The House Freedom Caucus has threatened to tank the House GOP Obamacare replacement bill unless they get what they want. But Trump is now calling their bluff. White House officials told members of the group on Thursday they have one shot: If they help defeat the American Health Care Act, the Trump administration is going to move on — meaning the Freedom Caucus could be pinned with actually saving Obamacare. The White House is betting that they will cave, given that saving Obamacare is something these conservative Republicans will never be able to stomach. (Bade and Bresnahan, 3/23)
And some tips on how to salvage the repeal-and-replace effort if the bill fails -
Politico: How The GOP Could Still Salvage The Obamacare Repeal
House Republican leaders scrambling to buck up wavering members had portrayed the vote as the only shot to eliminate the GOP’s longtime boogeyman — and as an essential show of support for President Donald Trump. But in fact, they have several options to salvage the repeal effort after they couldn't muster 215 votes. (Cancryn, 3/23)
