Rand Paul vs. GOP on Health Care: Who Will Win?

image
Published: 08 Mar, 2017
Updated: 17 Oct, 2022
2 min read

On Monday night, House GOP leaders released a plan to replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act (colloquially known as Obamacare) after lingering speculation and -- at times -- secrecy.

Here are some of the things the new health care bill will reportedly do:

  • Replace federal subsidies with a new form of tax credits.and grants for states to implement their own policies.
  • The federal government may not penalize taxpayers for not having health insurance, but it will allow health insurance companies to charge people a surcharge for a gap in coverage.
  • It keeps two provisions in ACA: Young people can stay on their parents' health care plan until 26, and health insurance companies cannot deny people coverage for pre-existing conditions.
  • Planned Parenthood would be ineligible for Medicaid reimbursements or federal grants. Planned Parenthood currently receives about $500 million in Medicaid reimbursement for providing a variety of medical services for women.

And the House's initial efforts seemed to have the president's support:

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/839086723552411648

However, the Republican Party is divided on Capitol Hill over the new health care bill. Many Republicans, including U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, call the new plan "Obamacare lite," and spent much of Tuesday bashing the bill.

https://twitter.com/RandPaul/status/839144449728983041

Paul, who has been the most outspoken critic of the House leadership's plan to renovate the ACA, explained his concerns and his own plan to repeal and replace Obamacare on MSNBC's Morning Joe:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlHgDM3rQGM

Sen. Paul has long attempted to take the lead on #RepealandReplace. He came out with his plan ahead of the House leadership. He demanded last week to see what he called a secret plan House Republicans were keeping "under lock & key." Now, he is leading the conservative opposition against the new health care bill.

IVP Donate

And Paul may ultimately be the one who holds all the keys in the GOP's efforts to replace the ACA. Just hours after President Trump tweeted out his confidence in the new health care bill, he gave Paul a shoutout:

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/839268048313929729

The debate over repealing and replacing Obamacare will continue, and it appears the biggest hurdle Republicans must clear continues to be securing a more united front from their own members. One thing seems clear, the debate on Capitol Hill appears far from over.

Photo Credit: Rich Koele / shutterstock.com

Latest articles

Crowd in Time Square.
NYC Exit Survey: 96% of Voters Understood Their Ranked Choice Ballots
An exit poll conducted by SurveyUSA on behalf of the nonprofit better elections group FairVote finds that ranked choice voting (RCV) continues to be supported by a vast majority of voters who find it simple, fair, and easy to use. The findings come in the wake of the city’s third use of RCV in its June 2025 primary elections....
01 Jul, 2025
-
6 min read
A man filling out his election ballot.
Oregon Activist Sues over Closed Primaries: 'I Shouldn't Have to Join a Party to Have a Voice'
A new lawsuit filed in Oregon challenges the constitutionality of the state’s closed primary system, which denies the state’s largest registered voting bloc – independent voters – access to taxpayer-funded primary elections. The suit alleges Oregon is denying the voters equal voting rights...
01 Jul, 2025
-
3 min read
Supreme Court building.
Supreme Court Sides with Federal Corrections Officers in Lawsuit Over Prison Incident
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 30 that federal prison officers and officials cannot be sued by an inmate who accused them of excessive force during a 2021 incident, delivering a victory for federal corrections personnel concerned about rising legal exposure for doing their jobs....
01 Jul, 2025
-
3 min read