U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks to reporters during a news conference on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. Also pictured, from left, are Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain of Michigan, Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota and Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana. (Photo: Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)
WASHINGTON – House Republicans released a health care bill Friday night that they hope will facilitate curb rising costs, although the bill falls tiny of the level of Democratic support needed to advance through the Senate.
The 111-page bill it will likely go to the House of Representatives next week, where Speaker Mike Johnson will need a vote from almost all of his members to pass the bill, which will be an uphill battle given the vastly different views of centrists and far-right members of the party on health care issues.
The Louisiana Republican said in a statement that the bill offers “clear, responsible alternatives that will lower premium costs and expand health care access and options for all Americans.”
Democrats are pushing for a three-year extension of increased tax credits for people who buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act platform.
So far, Republican leaders in the House and Senate have not agreed to any extension of these subsidies, arguing that it has led to skyrocketing health insurance costs.
GOP lawmakers instead continued to advance their own legislation, but without at least some support from Democrats, no bill will pass the 60-vote procedural hurdle in the Senate.
Senate Republicans tried to get promoted bill introduced earlier this week by Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy and Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, but fell tiny of the required votes.
Democrats also failed to advance their bill to extend the ACA marketplace tax breaks for three years.
The House bill, sponsored by Iowa Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks, is unlikely to overcome the confusion in Congress over rising health insurance and health care costs, potentially leaving the issue as one of the issues the parties can debate before next year’s midterm elections.
Targeting the “real drivers” of cost increases
Johnson blasted Democrats in a statement for passing the Affordable Care Act during President Barack Obama’s first term, saying the law failed to lower health care costs.
Johnson said House Republicans’ new legislation would address “the real drivers of health care costs to ensure affordable care, expand access and choice, and restore the integrity of the nation’s health care system to all Americans.”
According to a summary in Johnson’s release, the bill would require pharmacy benefit managers to “provide employers with detailed data on prescription drug spending, rebates, spread prices and formulary decisions, providing plans and employees with the transparency they deserve.”
Beginning in 2027, the legislation will provide funding for cost-sharing reduction payments, which the summary states will lower health insurance premiums and stabilize the individual market.
The House Rules Committee is scheduled to prepare the bill for debate on Tuesday, considering whether to allow any amendments to be considered on the floor.
The full House will then debate the legislation at the end of the week before leaving for a two-week summer break.
Trump wants direct payments
President Donald Trump, speaking in the Oval Office shortly after the bill was released, reiterated his preference for the federal government to send payments directly to Americans.
“We want to give this money to people and let them buy great health care, and it will save them a lot of money and it will be great,” he said.
But Trump also seemed to signal that he intended to stay out of negotiations in Congress, saying, “I’ll leave it to them and I hope they put some great legislation on this desk right here.”
