CBO says new healthcare score coming ‘soon’

by Rachel Roubein - 07/20/17 10:38 AM ET

The Congressional Budget Office will “soon release” a score of the Senate GOP healthcare bill.

The first score from the nonpartisan agency estimated that 22 million more Americans would be uninsured under the Senate Republican healthcare bill and 15 million fewer people would be on the Medicaid rolls by 2026.

The Senate has since revised its bill, and a score has been eagerly anticipated, as some senators said they were waiting to see an updated score before indicating how they would vote on the bill.

Revisions included adding an amendment from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), which would let insurers opt out of ObamaCare regulations if they also sold ObamaCare-compliant plans. But it doesn’t appear that this will be scored Thursday, and the Cruz measure could take weeks to be scored.

{mosads}It’s unclear how the absence of the Cruz measure will affect the score. Critics of the Cruz language worry it would lead to higher prices on premiums for sicker and older people, since it would also allow insurers to offer cheaper, basic plans for people who are younger and healthier.

On Monday, the Senate Republican repeal-and-replace ObamaCare bill appeared stalled, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced senators would vote on a motion to begin debate on ObamaCare repeal, which would lead to a vote on a clean repeal bill with a two-year delay.

But opposition quickly mounted to this approach, and senators met late into Wednesday night to discuss a path forward on their repeal-and-replace bill. McConnell said Wednesday that a motion to begin debate would occur next week.

Tags Mitch McConnell Ted Cruz