Republican legislation to fully repeal Obamacare is slated for a vote in the House next week, and it will include a provision instructing relevant committees to devise a GOP alternative to the health care reform law.
In an internal memo to Republicans, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) announced that repealing Obamacare will lead the agenda for February. The bill is written by Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-AL).
“This legislation will also include instructions to the relevant committees to develop our patient-centered health care reforms,” McCarthy wrote.
McCarthy offered the following talking point as a “messaging opportunity”:
Health care decisions should be made by patients and their doctors, not by Washington, D.C. We need solutions that reduce costs, give every American more control over their health care decisions, and provide access to world-class care with 21st Century cures and treatments.
Republicans say they want to craft an alternative to Obamacare by the time the Supreme Court rules in the King v. Burwell case, in which the justices could invalidate federal exchange subsidies serving some three-dozen states. The party is deeply divided on the issue and hasn’t been able to unify behind a way forward for years.
