Did Anything Happen to the ACA? Here’s a Quick Look

On Friday, the House approved a budget resolution passed by the Senate that will begin the process of repealing major portions of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

According to the New York Times,

The House vote, coming a week before President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inauguration, places Republicans squarely in position to fulfill their long-held desire to dismantle President Obama’s signature domestic achievement.

The quick action by Congress this week adds urgency to the vexing question of what comes next. While pursuing repeal with zeal, Republicans are far from reaching any consensus on how to go about replacing the health care law, under which more than 20 million Americans have gained health insurance.

The U.S. Senate voted 51 to 48 in the early hours of Jan. 12 to begin the process of repealing major portions of the Affordable Care Act. The vote went on for seven hours, as Senate Democrats attempted to build on growing unease among House and Senate Republicans over repealing major provisions of the ACA without a repeal in place. Ultimately, only Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) joined the Democrats in voting against, and the resolution was approved.

Last night’s hours-long late night vote is known as a “vote-a-rama,” a long series of back-to-back votes in the Senate. Though atypical, it’s become a more common practice for major votes in the Senate.

Before any concrete action is taken, the resolution will go to the Republican-majority House. That vote could happen as early as Friday, but — amid growing concerns over repealing without plans for replacement — some may push for a later voting timetable.

The resolution, should it pass in both chambers, requires House and Senate committees to sketch their plans for the legislation to repeal major portions of the ACA. The deadline for these new plans was originally set for late January, but five Republican senators more recently suggested a timeline of early March.

Though no specifics have yet been drawn, the New York Times has sketched out the most likely portions of the Affordable Care Act to be at risk:

“The legislation, as now conceived, would probably leave the most popular provisions of the health law intact, such as the prohibition on insurers’ denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.

Instead, the legislation would:

• Eliminate the tax penalties imposed on people who go without insurance and on larger employers who do not offer coverage to employees.
• Eliminate tens of billions of dollars provided each year to states that have expanded eligibility for Medicaid.
• Repeal subsidies for private health insurance coverage obtained through the public marketplaces known as exchanges.”

The vote last night was a big first step toward repealing the ACA. But the attempt will be a “fragile, multistep process … on pace to at least take weeks, even without any big stumbles,” says the Times.