House Speaker Mike Johnson said the House will not vote to extend Obamacare’s enhanced tax credits, which would put more than 22 million people at risk of losing health insurance.
Instead, Johnson and House leadership talked about Republicans embarking on their own health care legislation. On Thursday, Senate Republicans prepared to vote on their own health care plan.
“Over the next few days, you’re going to see the other party, the Republicans, continue the important work that we’ve started to actually lower health care costs and reduce fraud,” Johnson told reporters.
“Remember, Democrats don’t, they don’t actually want to solve this problem,” he claimed. “But you’ll see a modpack released next week.”
Between 22 million and 24 million Americans obtain health insurance through the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces. In 2021, the Biden administration expanded tax credits for marketplaces (also known as Obamacare) during the Covid-19 pandemic.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) discussed health care plans with Republican leaders and voted on the upcoming extension of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies. (Getty Images)
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 would extend the subsidy for another three years, until the end of this month. They opposed a resolution to keep the government open in October until a handful of moderate Democrats broke the deadlock and reopened the government in November.
Since then, Republicans have scrambled to come up with their own plans. Senate Republicans on Thursday will vote on legislation introduced by Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, and Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, to move some of the money into health savings accounts to buy so-called “bronze” health care plans, or catastrophic care plans.
The legislation would also prohibit funds from being used for abortion or transitional care for transgender people. The money would also prohibit gender transition care from being considered an essential health benefit in health plans sold on the Affordable Care Act marketplace and prohibit Medicaid from covering any of it. Republicans tried and failed to insert similar language into A Big and Beautiful Bill.
The Republican plan is far from a foregone conclusion, as Democrats are nearly unanimous in their opposition to the legislation in the Senate.
“I mean, if the Senate can’t move something by 60 votes, that seems to be a bigger issue,” Rep. Dusty Johnson, D-South Dakota, said. independent.
Sen. Susan Collins, who has her own separate plan on health care, said she was still working out the specifics of the plan, while Sen. Lisa Murkowski said she was still reviewing the Cassidy-Crapoe legislation.
“A lot of us still have questions about the implementation of some of these plans, but I think the important thing is that Republicans are expected to come out with a plan,” she told us independent. “You need one.”
But it’s not just in the Senate. Many Republicans in the House, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who is resigning in January, criticized Johnson for not proposing a plan to prevent constituents from doubling or even tripling their premiums.
Health care is just one part of a slew of projects Republicans who control the House and Senate need to get done. Congress must pass an annual defense bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, by the end of the year.
Additionally, Congress will vote again at the end of January on legislation to keep the government open.
