That same legislation would also block federal money from Planned Parenthood clinics, which provide abortion services. While the House approved a similar repeal measure, the Senate amended it, which will require the House to vote on the bill passed Thursday by the Senate. “This bill repeals as much of that failed law as we can under arcane Senate rules and the narrow guidelines of the budget”. Government officials said this week that health care spending grew at 5.3 percent in 2014, the steepest climb since Obama took office.
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After the reconciliation package passed, conservatives praised the Senate’s version of the legislation, which differed substantially from that passed by the House in October.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Obamacare has raised health care costs, limited patients’ ability to choose their doctors, and hurt the already struggling middle class.
Action on the controversial package dragged into Thursday evening, as senators worked their way through more than a dozen proposed amendments, including one co-authored by Sen.
Two moderate Republican Senators – Susan Collins of ME and Mark Kirk of IL – joined Democrats to oppose the bill.
Democrats have argued that millions of people now have insurance and have seen their health coverage improved under the law.
The U.S. Senate voted 52-48 Thursday against providing funding for Planned Parenthood, less than a week after a deadly attack on a Planned Parenthood facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who has been relentless in his efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, said the vote represented a significant step towards repealing every word of Obamacare..
The bill repeals numerous ACA’s key provisions, including the individual health insurance mandate, the employer mandate, the medical device tax and Medicaid expansion. Planned Parenthood has denied the allegations. “What they got instead was the cold shoulder of indifference”.
They also voted 90-10 to permanently repeal taxes on high-priced “Cadillac” insurance policies, a strong signal of growing congressional momentum for erasing that levy.
Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom (CCHF) says the passage of the bill is a win, but a bigger victory would be a full repeal of the law.
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Republicans lack the two-thirds majority needed to override the promised veto by President Obama. “What are we here for if not to help people back home?”
