Senate mulls pushing ‘Obamacare’ repeal to 2020

Republicans are meeting privately to iron out details of new health care bill

Senate Republicans are weighing a two-step process to replace the Affordable Care Act, or “Obamacare,” that would postpone a repeal until 2020, as they seek to draft a more modest version than a House plan that nonpartisan analysts said would undermine some insurance markets.

Republicans — in the early stages of private talks on the Senate plan — say they may first take action to stabilize premium costs in Obamacare’s insurance-purchasing exchanges in 2018 and 2019. Major insurers have said they will leave the individual market in vast regions of states including North Dakota, Iowa and Missouri.

A Senate plan is likely to continue subsidies that help low-income Americans with co-pays and deductibles, said third-ranking Republican John Thune of South Dakota. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said Thursday the administration hasn’t committed to paying subsidies due in June — which would create additional uncertainty for insurers as they set rates for next year.

“There clearly has to be a short-term solution that works with the transition until some of our long-term policy changes can take effect,” Thune told reporters.

The private Senate GOP negotiations include a 13-member leadership-controlled working group as well as almost daily closed-door discussions among all Senate Republicans. In addition, Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine has convened bipartisan talks with about a dozen senators.

Republicans in the Senate are stepping up their efforts to build consensus after the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday that the House plan — The American Health Care Act of 2017 or “Trumpcare” — narrowly passed May 4 would result in 23 million more people without insurance and, in some states, plans that are too costly for older or sicker people.

Democrats in both chambers are united against efforts to replace the 2010 Affordable Care Act and said yesterday the CBO assessment provides added ammunition for the Senate fight. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the report should be the “final nail in the coffin” in the Republican drive to end Obamacare.

“The report makes clear: Trumpcare would be a cancer on the American health care system, causing costs to skyrocket, making coverage unaffordable for those with pre-existing conditions and kicking millions off their health insurance,” said Schumer of New York.

A Quinnipiac University national poll released Thursday said Americans voters disapprove of the House measure by 57 percent to 20 percent. The May 17-23 poll of 1,404 voters had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Senate Republicans say there is a growing consensus that they want a slower phaseout of Obamacare’s expansion of Medicaid health coverage for the poor than in the House bill, which would cut the program by about $800 billion. Senators from states that elected to take advantage of the Medicaid expansion, want a several-year phaseout to avoid a “cliff ” that would occur if the expansion ended in 2020 as the House bill requires.

Senators say they’re examining the idea of automatically enrolling people who lack coverage into private insurance plans and are seeking advice from outside groups about whether that’s a good replacement for Obamacare’s mandate that people have insurance or pay a penalty.