House Republicans on Thursday plan to release details of a measure that would repeal Obamacare and replace parts of it, a key lawmaker said.
Rep. Chris Collins, a member of the Republican leadership team who sits on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which authored the legislation, said it would be made available Thursday morning to Republicans in a basement room of an office building that adjoins the Capitol.
“No one is getting a copy,” the New York lawmaker told the Washington Examiner. “We can go and read it.”
The measure, which Collins said will be considered in committee next Wednesday, is expected to look a lot like a proposal many conservatives already have panned — a multifaceted plan that replaces Obamacare’s subsidies with refundable tax credits and converts the law’s Medicaid expansion into a block grant system controlled by the states.
Conservatives, particularly members of the House Freedom Caucus, have rejected the proposal as Obamacare 2.0.
Collins said the proposal could change as it churns through the Energy and Commerce Committee, followed by the Budget Committee, floor consideration and then the Senate, where it faces steep opposition from several conservative Senate lawmakers.
Collins said the proposal upholds the GOP’s pledge to maintain coverage for those using Obamacare and to allow states to keep the Medicaid expansion.
“There is always a chance for changes throughout everything,” Collins said. “But we’ve got to put a marker down.”
House Republicans will huddle to discuss the proposal Thursday morning.
