House Republicans to unveil changes to the Obamacare repeal legislation

  According to this story the House Republicans are going to release changes to the Obamacare repeal legislation later on tonight. Here is more

House Republican leaders are poised to release Monday evening an expansive series of changes to their Obamacare repeal bill in a last-ditch attempt to win enough support to get the bill passed.

Requested by President Donald Trump, the amendment includes perks for restive conservatives who wanted optional work requirements and block granting in Medicaid, as well as a potential olive branch to wary centrists who demanded more help for older Americans to buy insurance, POLITICO has learned.

  Here is what we can expect:

The amendment would establish a reserve fund of at least $75 billion for tax credits to help the core constituency that propelled Trump to the White House: Americans between 50 and 64, who would see their premiums skyrocket under the current repeal plan.

  The above-linked article states that these tax credits are not actually included in the bill but the Senate would be instructed to add them in after the House votes on the bill. I do not like the sound of that, but here is more:

The amendment is also expected to repeal Obamacare’s taxes a year earlier than originally planned, a win for conservatives who want to eliminate the Affordable Care Act as quickly a possible.

Among other changes to the repeal bill, the amendment would delete a provision that would have allowed consumers to move leftover tax credit money into a Health Savings Account. Anti-abortion groups had raised concerns that the provision might be eliminated under the Senate’s strict budget rules and inadvertently allow for taxpayer funding of abortion.

The amendment would also change federal Medicaid reimbursement rates for the elderly and disabled, a win for governors who were concerned about cuts.

  This is still not a full repeal of Obamacare and as such it seems unlikely to win the support of people like Rand Paul and Ted Cruz.

malo periculosam libertatem quam quietum servitium