Vote on GOP health plan delayed, staunch conservatives remain opposed

A vote was originally set for Thursday but was delayed late Thursday afternoon.

The House could take it up on Friday but has until Monday to take action.

Meadows indicated that lawmakers needed more time to go over the bill and changes proposed to it earlier in the week.

“We need ... to read the bill fully before we take a vote,” he said.

Meadows added that he was a “no” vote and is “desperately trying to get to yes.”

Either way, he said, Obamacare is unsustainable and must be repealed.

3:45 p.m.

Republican leaders said late Thursday afternoon they will delay a vote on the GOP’s controversial plan to repeal Obamacare.

The House was set to vote on the bill, called the American Health Care Act, today -- the 7th anniversary of the passage of Obamacare. But it continues to face stiff opposition from hard-line conservatives and moderate Republicans alike.

The bill could now go before the house for a vote on Friday.

2:10 p.m.

President Donald Trump said he still hopes the GOP health plan will pass the House of Representatives this evening, despite failing to reach an agreement with Freedom Caucus members on Thursday afternoon.

But prospects for the bill appeared to dim after the head of the hard-line conservative group, which stands opposed to the plan, left a meeting with Trump without forging a deal.

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“No deal,” Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican, said after the meeting, according to the Associated Press.

Trump met with more than 30 members of the Freedom Caucus to try to win them over in support of the GOP bill, called the American Health Care Act. A number of the group have moved into the "yes" category, but House Speaker Paul Ryan still appears not to have enough votes to get the bill past the full House.

The number of Republicans in favor of it has gone up hour-by-hour, Trump spokesman Sean Spicer said during a press briefing Thursday afternoon.

“We continue to see the number go up, not down and that’s a positive sign,” Spicer said. “... I anticipate that we will get there.”

Members of the Freedom Caucus continue to oppose the plan, saying it doesn’t go far enough and any GOP plan should repeal Obamacare entirely.

Meanwhile, more moderate Republicans worry that it will strip millions of Americans of their health insurance.

Trump will meet with members of the moderate Tuesday Group of House Republicans Thursday afternoon to try to get them on board.

“There’s a little bit of a balancing act,” Spicer said.

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House leaders are still short of the 215 votes they need to pass the plan. It’s unclear at this point whether the vote may be delayed.

Spicer said whether the House will actually vote on the bill tonight is up to Republican leaders but nothing has led him to believe it won’t happen.

The House has until Monday to vote on the bill, but Republicans have set a self-imposed deadline of today in which to do it. Today marks the 7th anniversary of the passage of Barack Obama’s signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act.

Spicer emphasized again Thursday that there is no Plan B.

1:40 p.m.

Leaders of the hard-line conservative Freedom Caucus dealt a devastating blow to Republican leaders this afternoon -- saying it won’t support the GOP’s plan to replace Obamacare, according to the Associated Press.

12:30 p.m.

Georgia’s largest trauma hospital warned Thursday that the GOP’s Obamacare replacement plan would deal a devastating financial blow – forcing it to cut critical services.

Grady Memorial Hospital could lose $65 million a year, CEO John Haupert wrote in a letter to Georgia lawmakers in Washington, urging them to reject the GOP plan. That would force the hospital to cut services by 10 percent, including reducing mental health treatment and increasing costs for patients.

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The House is slated to vote on the bill today but it’s unclear when. Republican leaders are still scrambling to gather the support of holdouts that oppose it.

Hospitals across Georgia could be hit hard by the Republican plan, which could lead to 24 million Americans – including hundreds of thousands of Georgians – losing their insurance in the next decade.

Georgia hospitals already provide an estimated $1.75 billion a year in free care to the uninsured. A large influx of newly uninsured patients would hit smaller hospitals in rural areas that are already in dire financial straits even harder, leading some to close their doors for good.

11:20 a.m.

At a press conference Thursday morning, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Republicans’ efforts to rush passage of their health plan a “rookie’s error.”

The way it works is parties build consensus before setting a date to vote on legislation, Pelosi said. Instead, the GOP is focused on passing their plan on the anniversary of the passage of Obamacare, she said.

Republicans are voting to destroy health care coverage, she said. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated 24 million Americans could lose their health insurance over the coming decade under the GOP plan.

“That vote is going to be tattooed to their heads,” she said. “They can’t say Donald trump made me do it.”

In Georgia, an estimated 750,000 people -- including working class, older people living in rural areas -- could lose their health coverage, according to an analysis by Georgia State University.

Pelosi also derided last minute efforts by GOP leaders to eliminate Obamacare’s essential health benefits, which requires insurers to provide certain services such as maternity care and mental health and addiction services.

“Republicans are making being a woman a pre-existing condition again,” she said.

“Stripping guaranteed maternity care is a pregnancy tax pure and simple.”

10 a.m.

Today marks the 7th anniversary of the passage of Barack Obama’s signature health law -- the Affordable Care Act.

It also marks the day Republican leaders hope to gut it.

The House of Representatives is set to debate the GOP's Obamacare replacement plan today. And it's shaping up to be a marathon as Republican leaders push holdouts within their own ranks to get on board.

Hard-line conservatives have been staunchly opposed to the bill, saying any Republican plan should do away with Obamacare in its entirety. Moderates have also balked at the plan, worrying it could lead to millions of Americans losing their insurance.

But one-by-one members of the Freedom Caucus, which has been spearheading the opposition,  seem to be getting on board.

Credit: J. Scott Applewhite

Credit: J. Scott Applewhite

Pushing for consensus

President Donald Trump met with members last night and is reportedly set to meet with more this morning.

“Tonight is an encouraging night,” said U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., leader of the caucus, on Wednesday. “But I don’t want to be so optimistic as to say the deal is done.”

Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan have said they will push for a key element holdouts are demanding -- repealing Obamacare’s “essential health benefits,” which they argue makes the price of insurance too high.

Under Obamacare, Republicans are required to provide core services, such as maternity and mental health care.

The stakes are high for hundreds of thousands of Georgians.

An estimated 750,000 Georgians -- including working class, older people living in rural areas -- could lose their health insurance under the GOP plan, according to an analysis by Georgia State University.

What’s up next

After a series of late night meetings on Wednesday, lawmakers are scrambling to rewrite portions of the GOP plan, called the American Health Care Act.

There’s no telling at this point when the bill might hit the floor of the House for a vote. And the debate could go long into the night.

Even if the bill does pass, it faces an even bigger battle in the Senate next week.

Speaker Ryan is expected to hold a press conference at 3:30 this afternoon.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's health care guru Misty Williams will be following the House debate throughout the day.

Check back for updates.