Competing health care plans emerge
Bipartisan effort in Senate dogged by block-grant proposal
- Sen. Lamar Alexander acknowledged the obvious when he opened a series of hearings last week that he hopes will result in a bipartisan plan to lower health insurance premiums for millions of Americans.
“Timing is a challenge,” the Tennessee Republican conceded, pointing out that lawmakers will have to act quickly because insurers must have their 2018 rates ready by the end of the month.
But the calendar is far from the only obstacle senators face in their push to end a seven-year stalemate on health care and inject stability into the individual insurance market after the collapse of GOP efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Alexander, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, is leading the bipartisan effort with the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington.
They are aiming for a limited, shortterm fix that can provide relief from higher premiums for 18million Americans who don’t have employer-based insurance but instead buy individual coverage on one of the marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare.”
But competing legislation also is in the works.
Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Loui- siana and Dean Heller of Nevada are expected to unveil a plan this week that would give states block grants to design their own health insurance systems. The senators say that if states want to keep their ACA programs, they can, and if they want to repeal and do an entirely new system, they can do that, too.
The measure appears to be gaining momentum among Republicans and could complicate Alexander and Murray’s push for a short-term fix for the individual market, which has seen an exodus of insurers and large premium increases under the health care law.
Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican who cast the critical vote that killed the Senate’s bid to repeal the ACA in late July, said he likes the block-grant proposal but would have to see the final version before agreeing to support it. The White House also has signaled that President Donald Trump would sign the bill if it lands on his desk.
Even if Alexander and Murray are able to craft a bipartisan bill that can pass the Senate, they still have to get it through the House, which is a higher hurdle.
House conservatives are still holding out hope that the Affordable Care Act can be repealed. The conservative House Freedom Caucus has filed a petition to force a vote on an “Obamacare” repeal bill that passed Congress in 2015 but was vetoed by then-President Barack Obama. Some House Republicans also have shown more interest in the blockgrant bill than in Alexander and Murray’s attempts at a short-term fix.
Despite the headwinds, Alexander and Murray remain optimistic about their efforts. “I think everyone is looking for a result,” Alexander said Thursday.