President Obama told Democrats to try to improve the Affordable Care Act, but to not work with Republicans if they simply repeal his signature legislative achievement over Democrat objections, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said Thursday.
“Can this law be improved? Can the healthcare system be improved? Sure it can, and we ought to be working together to do that,” the Virginia Democrat said on CNN. “But, if they force through a partisan repeal vote and rush into a repeal that strips health insurance from 30 million Americans and then say, ‘Oh now please help us fix the mess we made,’ [Obama] said don’t bail them out of their own problem.”
Obama met with Democrats on the Hill Wednesday at the same time Vice President-elect Mike Pence was talking to GOP lawmakers about repealing Obamacare. Both meetings were devoid of specific ideas for plans on both sides, but instead were intended to bolster lawmakers for the upcoming fight.
Kaine said Democrats are willing to work on reforms to Obamacare but are outright rejecting the idea of repealing the law with no replacement. Even if Republicans delay the repeal of the law for a few years, the market will react and people will start losing their health care, he said.
To Democratic lawmakers, that’s unacceptable.
“As soon as you repeal it, you’re starting a process where you’re creating a health care and an economic malpractice,” he said, “and you’re not negotiating in good faith to help Americans.”
Kaine said there are only three things by which Democrats are judging Obamacare reform efforts. He said new ideas can’t reduce coverage, can’t raise costs to families, and can’t diminish the quality of care.
He said Senate Democrats are open to talking to Republicans, who need to live up to their own calls for bipartisanship.
“The time to talk about solutions is right now,” he said.
