Hours after the Senate voted to begin debate on health care reform, a proposal to repeal Obamacare and replace it with a more restrictive plan failed to gain the required votes, with nine Republican senators defecting to the Senate.
The final procedural vote was 43-57, with Democrats joined by Republican Senators Susan Collins (Maine), Bob Corker (Tenn.), Tom Cotton (Ark.), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Dean Heller (Nev.), Mike Lee (Utah), Jerry Moran (Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Rand Paul (Kentucky) in voting against the bill.
The fact that the comprehensive plan to replace the bill received far fewer than 50 votes was a bad sign for Republican Party leaders, who are still searching for a way to pass a final version of the health care bill this week. […]
Tuesday night’s vote was on a comprehensive amendment with divergent proposals that were intended to appeal to both conservatives and moderates in the Republican caucus.
One proposal, from Senator Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, would allow insurers to sell stripped-down health plans that do not include prenatal care and other benefits required by the Affordable Care Act, as long as they also sell plans that include those benefits. […]
The amendment also includes funding to cover medical costs incurred directly by low-income people, including those who purchased private insurance after losing a case Medicaid coverage as a result of the Senate bill. The proposal was developed by Sen. Rob Portman, a Republican from Ohio, and other senators from states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. (NOW)
The result was expected because the CBO never scored either Cruz or Portman’s proposals, meaning 60 votes were needed. Cruz acknowledged that fact before the vote but seemed hopeful that Republicans would be able to reach an agreement before the final vote this week.
“I will say that the bill that’s in the Senate … probably won’t pass today, but I think at the end of the process, the outline of it will probably be what we pass, at least in broad outline,” he said.
