A top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee warned Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, against marking up any Obamacare-related legislation without giving committee members and the public ample time to read it first.
“Any attempt to force a vote on a bill that strips healthcare from millions of Americans without transparent discussion or even a cost estimate represents a total miscarriage of justice,” Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett wrote Brady in a letter made public Friday. “Do not jam this bill down Americans’ throats. Robust and transparent deliberation is crucial, especially when the lives and well-being of so many American families are at stake—without it, democracy will crumble.”
Doggett was responding to rumors that the panel —which has partial jurisdiction over reconfiguring how Americans receive health insurance—will begin marking up a bill next week. However, Brady has neither introduced a bill nor scheduled a session for considering it.
Democrats are fuming that Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee discussed draft legislation with Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., in the Capitol Thursday while they were not permitted to join.
Republicans and their aides point out that there is nothing unusual about one side getting input from its own members before finalizing and introducing a bill.
House Republican leaders have been saying for months that they want to pass the first stage of repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act before Congress recesses for Easter in April.
