WASHINGTON
- An estimated 23 million people would lose health coverage by 2026 under
Republican legislation aimed at repealing Obamacare, a nonpartisan
congressional agency said on Wednesday in the first calculation of the new
bill's potential impact.
The
report from the Congressional Budget Office also said federal deficits would
fall by $119 billion between 2017 and 2026 under the bill, which was approved
this month by the Republican-dominated House of Representatives. The CBO score
raises the stakes for
Republican senators now working on their own version of
the legislation.
House
Republicans came under sharp criticism for passing the bill before the CBO
could make its assessment. The Trump administration already has relied on the
House bill's healthcare spending cuts in its proposed federal budget.
The
bill is called the American Health Care Act and would fulfill a long-running
Republican goal - repealing and replacing much of former President Barack
Obama's 2010 Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare. President Donald
Trump, who made replacing it a key campaign promise in 2016, and other
Republicans say Obamacare is too costly and creates unwarranted government
interference in healthcare decisions.
Congress
is aiming to pass the bill under a process called reconciliation, which
requires only a simple majority of votes in the Senate, where Republicans hold
a 52-48 majority, instead of 60 votes. Under those rules, all elements of the
bill must have a direct budgetary impact or else they must be stricken from the
legislation.
A
group of 13 Republican senators led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
are expected to draft their own version of the healthcare bill in the coming
months. McConnell, however, told Reuters on Wednesday he does not yet know how
Republicans will have the necessary votes.
The
CBO said federal deficits would fall by $119 billion between 2017 and 2026 under
the Republican bill.
The
bill would eliminate most Obamacare taxes that help subsidize private health
coverage for individuals, roll back the government's Medicaid health plan for
the poor and disabled and replace the law's income-based tax credits for buying
medical coverage with credits based on age.
The
new CBO score predicts the AHCA would cover 1 million more Americans than a
previous version of the bill, which the agency estimated would have left 24
million more people uninsured than Obamacare in 2026.
In
the weeks leading up to the House vote on May 4, two controversial amendments
were added to the bill that ultimately helped secure its passage, including one
that was added the day before the vote.
One
amendment would allow states to opt out of a popular Obamacare provision that
prevents insurers from charging people with pre-existing conditions higher
rates, as well as one that required insurers to cover 10 essential health
benefits such as maternity care and prescription drugs.
Another
amendment allocates an additional $8 billion over five years to help people
with pre-existing conditions cover medical costs.
Trump
promised to repeal Obamacare immediately upon taking office in January but
replacing the program that provided health insurance to 20 million people poses
political risks.
Hospitals
could lose significant revenue because far fewer people will have insurance and
insurers are worried about the affordability of the tax structure and proposed
major changes in Medicaid financing.
The
Republicans' first attempt at undoing Obamacare resulted in a setback for the
Trump agenda in March. Conservative and moderate Republican factions in the
House were opposed to the initial legislation and the leadership decided not to
put it up for a vote.
They
found a consensus through the opt-out amendments on pre-existing conditions,
which adds $8 billion for sufferers, and the essential health benefits and
passed it on May 4.
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