Inhofe, Lankford vote to start debate
After months of speculation and protest, Oklahoma’s two U.S. senators cast their votes Tuesday on a repeal of the Affordable Care Act, opting to move the bill over a procedural hurdle and toward possible passage.
U.S. Sens. Jim Inhofe and James Lankford voted for a motion to proceed on the American Health Care Act, which passed the House in early May with unanimous support from Oklahoma’s delegation. The motion to proceed passed by the narrowest of margins, with Vice President Mike Pence nudging it to the 51 votes necessary.
The vote to begin debate around 2 p.m. By 9 p.m., the Senate had voted on the measure.
Senators voted 57-43 late Tuesday to reject the plan in the first vote on an amendment to the bill. Those voting "no" included nine Republicans.
The rejected proposal included language by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell erasing the Obama law's tax penalties on people not buying insurance and cutting Medicaid.
Language by Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz would let insurers sell cut-rate policies with minimal coverage. And there was an additional $100 billion to help states ease costs for people losing Medicaid sought by Midwestern moderates.
Debate is expected to continue for several days.
“I applaud the Senate for taking a giant step to end the Obamacare nightmare,” said President Donald Trump in a statement. “As this vote shows, inaction is not an option, and now the legislative process can move forward as intended to produce a bill that lowers costs and increases options for all Americans.”
The vote does not repeal the ACA or ensure passage of an ACA replacement. Instead, it allows the Senate to move ahead with 20 hours of debate, vote on amendments to the bill and then vote on a final bill. What the resulting legislation will contain and whether it can pass the Senate remain uncertain.
The Oklahoma senators, both Republicans, are longtime critics of the 2010 health care overhaul known as Obamacare, making their votes Tuesday unsurprising. However, they have been quiet in recent weeks when asked publicly about how they would vote.
“This MTP vote will simply begin the open debate and amendment process. This is not a vote on any specific health care bill,” Lankford, R-Oklahoma City, said in a tweet, referring to the motion to proceed. “I’m committed to reform that increases access and lowers costs for Oklahomans of all income levels and health conditions. Let’s start debate.”
“Now is the time to begin debate on the repeal of Obamacare,” Inhofe, R-Tulsa, said in a statement. “Oklahomans are suffering — premiums have tripled in the last three years, four rural hospitals have closed and only one insurance provider remains on our exchange. Obamacare has not brought down costs nor enabled competition."
“Today’s vote begins debate on repealing what has proven to be a disastrous health care law,” he added. “By voting yes, I am committed to repealing Obamacare, providing relief to suffering Oklahomans.”
Republican attempts at repealing the Affordable Care Act have been criticized by Oklahoma’s largest health care organizations, including the Oklahoma State Medical Association, the Oklahoma Hospital Association, the Oklahoma Association of Health Care Providers and Oklahoma Disability Law Center.
The bills have also drawn disability rights protesters to Lankford’s office in downtown Oklahoma City twice in the past month. The protesters have urged Lankford to oppose decreases in spending for Medicaid and caps on the program, which finances several services for disabled adults.
On Saturday, five protesters were awaiting Inhofe when he landed at an airport in Enid.
They urged the senator to work with Democrats to improve the ACA, rather than repeal it. Inhofe said Democrats are resistant to changes to the ACA and told the small crowd he would vote for a bill that repeals the ACA without replacing it.
“I’m a leader in the group of repeal-only, if that’s all we can do,” Inhofe said, according to the Enid News.