FreedomWorks, a conservative outside group known for promoting Tea Party candidates, slammed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Monday amid reports that a Republican healthcare bill was shifting left on its provisions to repeal and replace parts of Obamacare.
“Republicans have the opportunity to save the American healthcare system, but leader Mitch McConnell must follow through on his promise to repeal Obamacare ‘root and branch,'” said FreedomWorks President Adam Brandon, quoting a comment McConnell made at the Conservative Political Action Conference in 2013. “Without a forceful repeal of Obamacare we will be unable to implement the patient-centered reforms needed to save our system.”
Republicans are limited in how much they can undo portions of Obamacare because they are using a process called budget reconciliation that allows them only to change portions of the law that are related to spending.
Some reports last week suggested that Republicans were looking to repeal portions of Obamacare that require insurers to cover a range of benefits, called 10 essential health benefits, while keeping a provision that madates insurers charge people of the same age the same amount, regardless of medical conditions. The provision, called “community rating,” is rife with controversy, as critics have said that allowing it to be repealed would offer inadequate protections for people with pre-existing conditions, while conservatives have countered that repealing one provision and not the other would not result in cost savings.
Conservatives have expressed concerns over talks that a healthcare bill would allow Medicaid to remain in place until 2027, without offsetting constraints that conservatives were pushing for on the long-term growth rate. Under Obamacare, most states have expanded Medicaid to cover low-income people, and it remains one of the most contentious parts of the healthcare bill among lawmakers.
“It’s essential that any reform effort allows states flexibility to determine their own definitions of community rating, which, under Obamacare, undermines the entire idea of insurance as risk management,” Brandon said. “By extending Medicaid expansion to 2027, the Senate majority leader is essentially surrendering to moderates in his conference and ignoring grassroots conservatives. Barack Obama could support it going to 2027 because that means it will never be rolled back.
“There is still time for Senate Republicans to follow through on their campaign promises to repeal Obamacare and transform the American healthcare system to serve patients.”
