Week ahead: Senate Republicans look to overcome ObamaCare divisions

Senate Republicans will seek to overcome major divisions and make progress on their stalled ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bill as they return to Washington in the coming week.

Republican leaders are hoping to regain momentum on the legislation after losing steam during the recess. They want to vote before the end of July on their ObamaCare repeal bill, after having to delay a vote initially expected to take place before the Fourth of July recess.

But a vote isn’t likely to happen soon.

Republican senators spent the recess downplaying the chances of a quick vote on the bill with centrists and conservatives still deeply divided.

{mosads}”We’re still several weeks away from a vote, I think,” Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) said at an event Wednesday.

Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) told constituents there is not a “significant consensus” about how to pass the GOP plan.

Congress is scheduled to be in town for only three weeks before leaving for the month-long August recess.

Some lawmakers have even floated delaying or canceling that break if they can’t make progress on key issues, including healthcare.

Likely changes that could be worked into the bill include increasing the tax credits to provide more assistance to help low-income and older people afford coverage.

Senators are also openly debating whether to keep a tax on high earners that was created to help pay for ObamaCare.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is also pushing hard for an amendment that would allow insurers to sell plans that don’t comply with ObamaCare regulations, so long as they also sell plans that comply with those rules.

That amendment has been endorsed by the White House and is supported by both Senate and House conservatives.

But centrist Republicans say it’s a nonstarter and worry that it would essentially gut protections for people with pre-existing conditions.

It’s also unclear if the amendment would pass rules for reconciliation, the fast-track budgetary process Republicans are using for ObamaCare repeal.

At the same time, Republican senators have also begun talking about backup plans if the bill fails. Cruz is one of the leading proponents, along with fellow GOP Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Rand Paul (Ky.) of repealing ObamaCare immediately, and dealing with a replacement plan later.

That strategy, though, was rejected by more moderate lawmakers earlier this year, who are worried about people losing coverage with no plan to fill the gap.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) also publicly aired doubts that the repeal bill would get through the upper chamber.

McConnell said that if the GOP effort faltered, lawmakers would need to act quickly to stabilize the insurance markets.

“If my side is unable to agree on an adequate replacement, then some kind of action with regard to private health insurance markets must occur,” McConnell said at an event in Kentucky on Thursday, according to multiple reports.

Outside of the ObamaCare push, there will also be a number of health related hearings in the coming week.

On Tuesday, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee will take up a slew of bills to improve healthcare for veterans.

On Wednesday, a House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee will hold a hearing on how states are “Combating the Opioid Crisis.”

That same day, the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing on how medical product manufacturers share information about the uses of their devices.

In case you missed it:

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