Overnight Healthcare: CBO score imperils ObamaCare repeal | Breaking down the numbers | WH hits back over score | Trump phones holdouts | Dems plan floor protest

Several Senate Republicans said Monday that they would not back a procedural motion on legislation repealing and replacing ObamaCare after a Congressional Budget Office report found the bill would leave 22 million more people without insurance in the next decade.

The findings cast serious doubt on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) ability to get the measure through his chamber this week. McConnell can only afford to lose two votes, and four senators as of Monday night said they would not vote for a motion to proceed to the bill.

Even before the release of the CBO score, five GOP senators had said they would oppose the draft bill itself without changes.

A sixth GOP senator, Susan Collins (Maine), wrote on Twitter after the release of the CBO report that she would vote no on the motion to advance the bill.

{mosads}”CBO says 22 million people lose insurance; Medicaid cuts hurt most vulnerable Americans; access to healthcare in rural areas threatened,” she wrote.

Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) also indicated they will vote against the motion without changes. The three senators, along with Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), had previously announced they opposed the measure as drafted.

Even before Collins made her feelings known, the CBO analysis was raising alarm bells for centrist Republicans.

“It certainly makes me more concerned,” Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said of the analysis on CNN. “It makes me want to explore this more.”

Read more here. 

Click here for more on the Republicans voting no on the procedural vote.

And keep track of where GOP senators stand on The Hill’s Whip List.

 

Breaking down the CBO numbers

The Senate Republicans’ ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bill would result in 22 million more uninsured people over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The bill would result in a $321 billion deficit reduction over 10 years, the CBO found.

There would be 15 million more uninsured people next year, the report finds, largely due to the mandate to buy insurance being repealed. The number of uninsured would then rise in later years as smaller subsidies to buy private insurance and Medicaid cuts kick in.

CBO finds that lower financial assistance in this bill compared to ObamaCare would make premiums unaffordable for many low-income people, and deductibles would rise as well.

“As a result, despite being eligible for premium tax credits, few low-income people would purchase any plan,” the CBO report states.

There would be 15 million fewer people enrolled in Medicaid over a decade, the CBO finds, as the legislation includes deep cuts to the program.

As with the House healthcare bill, the CBO found that premiums would initially rise under the Senate bill, before falling on average over time.

Read more here.

Also, the CBO found 4 million would lose employer health coverage under the GOP plan.

 

White House hits CBO over score

The White House slammed the Congressional Budget Office after its analysis showed the Senate Republicans’ healthcare bill would leave 22 million more people uninsured over the next decade.

“The CBO has consistently proven it cannot accurately predict how healthcare legislation will impact insurance coverage,” the White House said in a statement on Monday evening.

“This history of inaccuracy, as demonstrated by its flawed report on coverage, premiums, and predicted deficit arising out of Obamacare, reminds us that its analysis must not be trusted blindly.”

Read more here.

 

Trump phones Senate holdouts on GOP healthcare bill

President Trump has phoned several Republican holdouts on the Senate healthcare bill to try to get them on board.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Monday that Trump spoke by phone this weekend with Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.), Ted Cruz (Texas) and Ron Johnson (Wis.).

Those three GOP senators, along with Utah’s Mike Lee, oppose the Senate bill released last week because it does not go far enough to repeal ObamaCare and lower insurance premiums.

Read more here.

 

Health insurer Anthem endorses Senate bill

Health insurance giant Anthem Inc. endorsed the Senate GOP’s healthcare legislation Monday, saying it believes the bill will stabilize the individual market.

The endorsement comes as doctors, hospitals, patient groups and even other health plans have slammed the legislation as harmful, and outside experts have warned it could destabilize the individual marketplace.

“We believe the Senate discussion draft will markedly improve the stability of the individual market and moderate premium increases” because it appropriates billions of dollars in short-term funding to shore up the exchanges, provides cost sharing reduction (CSR) funds, and eliminates a tax on health insurance plans, Anthem said in a statement.

Read more here.

 

Is Senate ObamaCare repeal bill too mean?

Senate Republicans negotiating their conference’s healthcare bill sought to create legislation that would repeal ObamaCare but leave a safety net in place for low-income and older Americans.

Observing the fierce backlash against the unpopular House bill, GOP senators in near unison said they would be going in a different direction.

Even President Trump got in the act, reportedly telling Senate Republicans behind closed doors that the House bill was “too mean.”

Now the Senate is coming under attack for releasing legislation that critics say would significantly raise costs on the most vulnerable.

Read more here.

 

American Medical Association comes out against Senate bill

One of the nation’s largest healthcare lobbying groups Monday announced its opposition to the Senate’s ObamaCare repeal plan, warning that it could hurt the “most vulnerable citizens.”

The American Medical Association (AMA) wrote a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) warning against cuts to Medicaid and changes to ObamaCare’s subsidies and regulations.

“Medicine has long operated under the precept of Primum non nocere, or ‘first, do no harm.’ The draft legislation violates that standard on many levels,” AMA Executive Vice President and CEO James Madara wrote in the letter.

“We sincerely hope that the Senate will take this opportunity to change the course of the current debate and work to fix problems with the current system,” Madara added.

“We believe that Congress should be working to increase the number of Americans with access to quality, affordable health insurance instead of pursuing policies that have the opposite effect, and we renew our commitment to work with you in that endeavor.”

Read more here.

 

Dems plan floor protest

Democrats are planning an hours-long protest from the Senate floor on Monday night as they gear up ahead of a vote on the GOP plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare.

Ben Wikler, the Washington director for the progressive outside group MoveOn.org, urged supporters to come to the Capitol on Monday night to watch the floor speeches from inside the Senate chamber.

“Dems will #holdthefloor against Trumpcare late into night,” he tweeted.

A senior aide confirmed the plan, adding there “will be a few hours worth [of speeches]” after a procedural vote scheduled for early Monday evening.

The mini-talkathon comes as Democrats are digging in ahead of the highly watched vote this week. Progressive activists are expected to hold events around the Capitol every day to protest the bill leading up to a final vote, which could come on Thursday night or early Friday.

Read more here.

 

What we’re reading

Cuts to Medicaid may limit access to nursing homes (The New York Times)

The downstream consequences of per capita spending caps in Medicaid (healthaffairs.org)

Greater opioid use and mental health disorders are linked in a new study (The Washington Post)

 

State by state

Wisconsin Hospital Association joins Sen. Johnson to oppose Senate health care bill (Milwaukee Business Journal)

Texas hospitals fear losing $6.2 billion Medicaid deal (khn.org)

California activist Tom Steyer adds healthcare to his brand (Politico)