House Republican leaders have pulled their bill to replace the Affordable Care Act after it became clear they did not have the votes to pass it.</s>CHICAGO (CBS) — The Republican health care plan might not have the support necessary to pass in the House, which was scheduled to vote on the legislation Thursday night.

If Obamacare is to become Trumpcare, Thursday night could mark a first major test. The White House has been steaming ahead with its legislative push.

“There’s Plan A and Plan A. We’re going to get this done. We’re going to get it done. That’s it, plain and simple,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Wednesday. “This is the only train leaving the station.”

That train is the GOP’s American Health Care Act, their plan to repeal Obamacare and replace it with legislation the Congressional Budget Office has said would reduce the federal deficit by $337 billion over the next 10 years, but likely result in 24 million people losing coverage.

CBS News counted 31 Congressional Republicans who have said they oppose the plan, which would leave the House shy of the 216 votes needed for passage.

Some conservative Republicans have said the plan does not go far enough to do away with former President Obama’s signature health care legislation, the Affordable Care Act, calling this plan “Obamacare Light.” Moderates have complained AHCA would leave too many people without insurance.

In Illinois, only three of seven Republican House members have said they’ll vote yes on the bill. The other four have been on the fence, or have declined comment.

Ten of the state’s Democrats in Congress have said they’ll vote no on AHCA, and the eleventh hasn’t said.

Former Vice President Joe Biden has said he’s worried about the effect repealing Obamacare would have on the uninsured.

“We don’t have to take this act, which has been incredibly beneficial – not only, by the way, to individuals, but total health care costs in America,” he said.

Critics have said AHCA would devastate Medicaid, and cost Cook County alone hundreds of millions of dollars.</s>House Republican leaders have pulled their bill to replace the Affordable Care Act after it became clear they did not have the votes to pass it.</s>INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — A vote that was scheduled to take place in the House on Thursday night has been delayed. Reports state the vote on a new health care plan that could have replaced the Affordable Care Act was in jeopardy of failing.

The new plan, The American Health Care Act has been hotly debated among lawmakers in Washington and here at home. Governor Eric Holcomb (R) spoke for the first time about his support for the new plan. He sent a letter to lawmakers in Washington, urging them to vote yes on the new plan. Holcomb said he sees the new deal as a first step in repealing the Affordable Care Act, by allowing states to have more control over their own plans.

“I’ve always said that the right first step is to repeal Obamacare. It’s clearly not working,” Governor Holcomb states. He added, “I’m asking Washington, trust the states, trust Indiana. We’ll deliver if we’re given the proper authority and the proper control and most importantly the proper timeline.”

Governor Holcomb promised Hoosiers that no one will lose their current healthcare coverage.

“Compassionate about the folks that are covered right now. I want to make sure the folks in the state of Indiana are treated like people, not numbers,” he said.

State democrats disagree. Senator Minority Leader, Tim Lanane (D), said there’s too much uncertainty about how a plan like this would impact Hoosiers down the road.

“The concern I have is no matter what gets passed, there’s going to be a reduction in overall federal funding for our programs and that will trigger the repeal of what we’ve done to get Hip2.0 put in place,” Senator Lanane said.

Senator Joe Donnelly (D) said he believes the new plan would eliminate funding for drug treatment.

“At a time when our state is in tremendous crisis, this seems to be the wrong thing to do,” Senator Donnelly said.

Even some state republicans say they’re not backing the new plan with full confidence. Senator David Long (R) said while he supports a plan to repeals the Affordable Care Act, he doesn’t want to jump into a deal that might not be a good fit.

“I want to see something that doesn’t cut the legs out from the states who have expanded Medicaid, especially the Indiana plan which I think is the model that the federal government will pursue for the states in the future,” he said.

The latest reports indicate that it will be a close call and that republicans don’t have the votes they need to pass the plan. Reports state the vote could happen Friday morning.

Governor Holcomb along with 7 other governors from Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, and Utah sent this letter to Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan:

Thank you for your ongoing efforts to repeal and replace ObamaCare, which has led to higher premiums and fewer choices. ObamaCare has overburdened and overregulated our businesses, medical communities, and American families, and it has expanded Medicaid in a way that diverts resources away from the program’s core mission. This bill addresses many of the concerns of those who sent a loud and clear message to

 Washington last November demanding change. We write today to offer our support for the American Health Care Act, especially now that important changes to the legislation were announced this week. The move to a more flexible Medicaid program that empowers states with options to utilize per-capita caps or block grants; providing a workable time frame for transition out of ObamaCare; advancing work requirements to encourage able-bodied Americans to find jobs; and providing states with funds to help stabilize our insurance markets and provide assistance to low income Americans, are all positive improvements to the bill. We understand there may be additional improvements and technical changes as the bill advances, and we will continue to engage in discussions with the Congress and the Trump Administration. Transformational change from a “free” entitlement where all rules are made in Washington to a true state driven healthcare system will not be easy and will take a coordinated effort from government and all sectors of the healthcare industry. We must keep moving toward that goal with passage of the American Health Care Act.</s>House Republican leaders have pulled their bill to replace the Affordable Care Act after it became clear they did not have the votes to pass it.</s>Washington (CNN) A frenzied 24 hours filled with hushed deliberations on Capitol Hill, senior-level meetings at the White House and back-to-back phone calls with the President came to an end Wednesday -- quietly and unceremoniously.

Well before midnight, this much was clear: Republicans still had no deal on their health care bill to repeal Obamacare, as a Thursday vote loomed around the corner.

House Speaker Paul Ryan and his top deputies huddled with a group of moderate Republicans in the Speaker's office Wednesday night, as members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus sounded increasingly optimistic that they were close to getting a major concession from the White House.

Hours later, Ryan and his top deputies never came out to speak to the cameras and dozens of reporters waiting outside, and it was clear that leadership had no good news to share. With the exception of a few members who rushed away without speaking to press, all leaders in the room, including Ryan, appeared to have ducked out using side exits.

While this gathering was wrapping up, House leaders had gotten more bad news: GOP Rep. Charlie Dent, the leader of the moderate Tuesday Group, released a statement opposing the current bill spearheaded by Ryan and President Trump.

The late-night session in Ryan's office came soon after what appeared to be a major breakthrough in the impasse. The Freedom Caucus, which had stubbornly opposed the GOP bill for days, was suddenly optimistic that a deal was possible. The White House was offering a provision that would strip the so-called "essential health benefits" from the House bill, and GOP leadership indicated they were open to this change.

Late Wednesday, Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows said: "We are very hopeful we can get this done."

Now, Trump and his GOP colleagues on Capitol Hill head into Thursday still unclear of the fate of their mission to repeal Obamacare.

"It has always been the case - pull the bill one way, risk losing members on the other end," a lawmaker involved told CNN.

The vote count has been tight. According to CNN's ongoing whip count, as of Wednesday night, 24 House Republicans have flat-out said they will vote against the bill, while four more have indicated they are likely to oppose it.

With so much on the line, Trump, White House officials and Republican leaders have been lobbying their colleagues all week. On Wednesday, Trump even personally called individual members of the Freedom Caucus just as a possible deal was emerging.

Trump is not involved in the details -- "Either doesn't know, doesn't care or both," an aide told CNN -- but he is very involved in the sale now, and "appears energized by that."

Getting conservatives to back the bill will be essential because moderates are jumping ship. Even before Dent's announcement, a handful of relatively moderate Republicans hailing from New York, Iowa and New Jersey said Wednesday they would not support the bill. One lawmaker even stated bluntly that the GOP plan simply was not better than Obamacare.

GOP Rep. Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey said he was concerned about the bill's impact on his state's residents and that the proposal "is not as good as or better than what we currently have."

The prospects of cutting out the requirement that insurance plans cover essential health benefits would further lead to moderates turning away from the GOP proposal. Trump and Ryan must get 216 Republicans on board and can afford only 21 defections, if no Democrat joins them.

"There's a certain amount of gamesmanship going on here -- a little bit of chicken," GOP Rep. Tom Cole told CNN on Wednesday.

As deliberations continue, 2018 is on every Republican's mind.

Trump warned of big losses at the ballot box if Republicans fail to repeal and replace Obamacare, and the White House insists there is no alternative legislation or plan if they fail. "There is no Plan B. There's Plan A and Plan A," said White House press secretary Sean Spicer. "We're going to get this done."

Various lawmakers who are planning to vote "no" have described to CNN having 30-to-45 minute phone calls with Trump officials in recent days. And Vice President Mike Pence and Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price are also involved in behind-the-scenes lobbying.

Ryan's whip operation has also been in full blitz mode. The House speaker has been texting directly with some members. Majority Whip Steve Scalise and Deputy Whip Patrick McHenry have also been singling out individual Freedom Caucus members to try to peel them away from the group.

Major changes to 'essential health benefits'

Some of Trump's personal lobbying has gotten results.

According to Republican Rep. Richard Hudson, who supports the bill, Trump agreed on Wednesday to GOP Rep. Steve King's request to lobby to change the essential health benefits provision at a later point. At a meeting at the White House, Trump told King he would publicly push for the change in the Senate and King agreed to vote for the bill.

"They shook hands," Hudson told reporters. "We are voting tomorrow, no matter what, but I feel like we'll have the votes."

Separately, GOP Rep. Lou Barletta announced Wednesday that he had switched his "no" vote to "yes" after receiving support for his legislation to deny health care credits to illegal immigrants.

Meanwhile, the White House has been busy courting the Freedom Caucus for days. According to a source, the caucus' members have been invited to visit in small groups in recent days. That effort continued Wednesday, with the group's members again paying a visit to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

What's in the bill

The bill introduced earlier this month would roll back many of the Obamacare taxes and eradicate the individual mandate. Instead of the subsidies available in the Affordable Care Act, the GOP plan provides Americans with refundable tax credits to purchase health insurance.

The bill also significantly restructures Medicaid and allows states to require able bodied adults to work if they want to be eligible for the program. After 2020, states will no longer be able to expand Medicaid like they could under Obamacare and states that haven't expanded the program at all are barred from doing so.

The GOP bill, however, still includes some of the most popular pieces of Obamacare, including protections for people with pre-existing conditions (though insurers would be allowed to charge higher premiums to individuals whose coverage has lapsed) and letting children stay on their parents' insurance plans until the age of 26.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that 24 million fewer Americans would be covered under this bill than under Obamacare by 2026 if the bill is enacted in its current form.</s>House Republican leaders have pulled their bill to replace the Affordable Care Act after it became clear they did not have the votes to pass it.</s>CHICAGO (CBS) — After President Donald Trump demanded a make-or-break vote on the Republican health care plan, lawmakers were expected to bring the legislation to the House floor Friday after a long night of closed-door meetings.

However, with several Republicans still expected to vote no, the GOP health care bill could be rejected.

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) scheduled Friday’s votes after a meeting at the White House where the president said negotiations with Republican holdouts were over, and he would leave Obamacare in place and pursue the rest of his agenda if the health care plan fails. The president’s ultimatum came after the House postponed a planned vote on the measure Thursday afternoon.

“I think it was a helpful message,” U.S. Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said. “The president’s done everything he can to put us in a position to win.”

Ryan emerged from closed-door meetings late Thursday night sounding confident about the vote to repeal and replace former President Donald Trump’s signature health care plan, the Affordable Care Act.

“For 7 ½ years, we have been promising the American people that we will repeal and replace this broken law, because it’s collapsing and it’s failing families, and tomorrow we’re proceeding,” he said.

However, with U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) announcing he plans to vote no, CBS News reports at least 35 House Republicans oppose the plan. With Democrats unanimously opposed to the GOP plan, only 22 Republican no votes are needed to reject it.

Many GOP lawmakers have been reluctant to support Ryan’s proposed American Health Care Act, which the Congressional Budget Office has said would leave 14 million fewer people without health insurance in 2018, and 24 million fewer without insurance over the next decade.

“We have to get it right, not get it done fast,” U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Penn.) said. “I thought the bill misses the mark and that’s why I’ve taken the position I’ve taken.”

Democrats also have ripped the AHCA as a $600 billion giveaway to the super-wealthy, referring to the tax cuts included in the plan.

“Let’s pull off the charade here, and expose what’s really going on. This is just another Republican tax cut for the rich,” U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) said.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) has said the Republican health care plan would cause hundreds of thousands of Illinois residents to lose health care coverage next year alone.</s>House Republican leaders have pulled their bill to replace the Affordable Care Act after it became clear they did not have the votes to pass it.</s>INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — A vote that was scheduled to take place in the House on Thursday night has been delayed. Reports state the vote on a new health care plan that could have replaced the Affordable Care Act was in jeopardy of failing.

The new plan, The American Health Care Act has been hotly debated among lawmakers in Washington and here at home. Governor Eric Holcomb (R) spoke for the first time about his support for the new plan. He sent a letter to lawmakers in Washington, urging them to vote yes on the new plan. Holcomb said he sees the new deal as a first step in repealing the Affordable Care Act, by allowing states to have more control over their own plans.

“I’ve always said that the right first step is to repeal Obamacare. It’s clearly not working,” Governor Holcomb states. He added, “I’m asking Washington, trust the states, trust Indiana. We’ll deliver if we’re given the proper authority and the proper control and most importantly the proper timeline.”

Governor Holcomb promised Hoosiers that no one will lose their current healthcare coverage.

“Compassionate about the folks that are covered right now. I want to make sure the folks in the state of Indiana are treated like people, not numbers,” he said.

State democrats disagree. Senator Minority Leader, Tim Lanane (D), said there’s too much uncertainty about how a plan like this would impact Hoosiers down the road.

“The concern I have is no matter what gets passed, there’s going to be a reduction in overall federal funding for our programs and that will trigger the repeal of what we’ve done to get Hip2.0 put in place,” Senator Lanane said.

Senator Joe Donnelly (D) said he believes the new plan would eliminate funding for drug treatment.

“At a time when our state is in tremendous crisis, this seems to be the wrong thing to do,” Senator Donnelly said.

Even some state republicans say they’re not backing the new plan with full confidence. Senator David Long (R) said while he supports a plan to repeals the Affordable Care Act, he doesn’t want to jump into a deal that might not be a good fit.

“I want to see something that doesn’t cut the legs out from the states who have expanded Medicaid, especially the Indiana plan which I think is the model that the federal government will pursue for the states in the future,” he said.

The latest reports indicate that it will be a close call and that republicans don’t have the votes they need to pass the plan. Reports state the vote could happen Friday morning.

Governor Holcomb along with 7 other governors from Alabama, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, and Utah sent this letter to Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan:

Thank you for your ongoing efforts to repeal and replace ObamaCare, which has led to higher premiums and fewer choices. ObamaCare has overburdened and overregulated our businesses, medical communities, and American families, and it has expanded Medicaid in a way that diverts resources away from the program’s core mission. This bill addresses many of the concerns of those who sent a loud and clear message to

 Washington last November demanding change. We write today to offer our support for the American Health Care Act, especially now that important changes to the legislation were announced this week. The move to a more flexible Medicaid program that empowers states with options to utilize per-capita caps or block grants; providing a workable time frame for transition out of ObamaCare; advancing work requirements to encourage able-bodied Americans to find jobs; and providing states with funds to help stabilize our insurance markets and provide assistance to low income Americans, are all positive improvements to the bill. We understand there may be additional improvements and technical changes as the bill advances, and we will continue to engage in discussions with the Congress and the Trump Administration. Transformational change from a “free” entitlement where all rules are made in Washington to a true state driven healthcare system will not be easy and will take a coordinated effort from government and all sectors of the healthcare industry. We must keep moving toward that goal with passage of the American Health Care Act.
The United States House of Representatives approaches a vote on a replacement plan for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare).