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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., all but hammered a nail into the coffin of the Senate trying to address healthcare in 2025 today.
“We’re not going to pass anything by the end of this week. But I do think there is a potential pathway in January,” said Thune.
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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., nixed an idea from GOP moderates for a temporary extension of expiring Obamacare subsidies because it didn’t comply with Congressional budgetary rules.
But this afternoon, Johnson reversed himself and is willing to entertain a plan from Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y.
Rather than simply extending the subsidies on an interim basis – which means that insurance companies receive the money – LaLota’s plan provides a two-year tax deduction for those who previously received the Obamacare aid.
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President Trump said he would not sign a bill which continued to send money to the insurance companies. So the LaLota approach cuts out insurance companies from the equation and policyholders score the tax credit.
LaLota and others are due to present their plan in the House Rules Committee later this hour. It was believed that Johnson and the Rules panel would block the older plan to renew the subsidies. But Johnson said afternoon that “there’s a real possibility they get a vote on it.”
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That said, a vote is far from a guarantee of a fix. And it’s far from certain that the House would adopt the amendment and copy it onto the underlying GOP health care bill.
The House is set to debate and vote on a bill tomorrow to allow for “association” healthcare plans. That would permit groups of people to pool their money together to purchase insurance plans, and conceivably, save money.
Some moderates from swing districts are still not satisfied and worried about the political consequences in the 2026 midterms if Republicans fail to address healthcare.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., appeared skeptical that Congress could address the skyrocketing premiums ex post facto in 2026.
“You can’t do it after January first,” said Schumer. “It’s expired already. It’s not the same as it was before. Once it expires, the toothpaste is out of the tube.”
Also today, Schumer refused to commit to Democrats using the same tactics with healthcare to lord over Republicans as the next government funding deadline approaches January 30.
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