The House Republicans may have passed their healthcare bill last Thursday, but GOP Senators are saying they want to write their own bill. Most likely, they won’t even vote on the current Trumpcare plan.
Surprisingly, one Republican senator even wants to create a bill that has the approval of late-night show host, Jimmy Kimmel. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La) said:
“As you present that, I ask does it pass the Jimmy Kimmel test?”
“Would the child born with a congenital heart disease be able to get everything he or she would need in that first year of life? I want it to pass the Jimmy Kimmel test.”
Senator @BillCassidy "the senate will write its own bill," says he will push to "expand risk pools" https://t.co/m7jsBHKj4V
— CNN Newsroom (@CNNnewsroom) May 5, 2017
Cassidy has been working on a bill that would provide all those services to the child even if the costs went over a certain amount. However, it may not be all sunshine and roses. The GOP Senate plan is still a step back from The Affordable Care Act.
Under Senator Cassidy’s plan, states could choose to stay with the Affordable Care Act or they could receive a similar amount in federal money. That money would be used for consumers to pay for medical care and health insurance. He said:
“We are moving the locus of repeal to state government. States should have the right to choose.”
The proposal created by both Senator Cassidy, a physician, and Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), is called The Patient Freedom Act. The bill does maintain dependent coverage until age 26, prohibits preexisting condition exclusions, and does not impose annual or lifetime limits on benefits.
The bill has also been met with a lot of criticism from Democrats. After all, it is still a typical Republican bill. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said this:
“Millions of Americans would be kicked off their plans, out-of-pocket costs and deductibles for consumers would skyrocket, and protections for people with preexisting conditions, such as cancer, would be gutted.”
A joint statement by six groups including the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, and American College of Physicians was released which says:
“We urge the Senate to promptly put aside the AHCA, and instead work with our organizations to achieve real bipartisan solutions to improve affordability, access, and coverage for all.”
Ronald F. Pollack, the executive director of Families USA, said the bill:
“falls way short of providing the protections and coverage people have under the Affordable Care Act.”
Right now, Senate Republicans lack the 60 votes needed to block a filibuster by Democrats.
Featured image from Gage Skidmore via Flickr under CC BY-SA 2.0.
