On Tuesday, the House voted, again, to repeal Obamacare. What makes this attempt notable, however, is that the measure contained instructions to the House Committees with jurisdiction to develop alternative policies and legislation in the absence of the health care law. This is the first time the House has coupled an ObamaCare repeal vote with instructions to write a replacement, but the legislation doesn’t impose any deadlines on committees to finish their work.
In addition, while the vote of 239-186 fell largely around party lines, this vote was the first time any Republicans have voted against repealing ObamaCare. Every Democrat in the chamber opposed the measure and three Republicans: Reps. Robert Dold (R-IL), John Katko (R-NY) and Bruce Poliquin (R-ME) voted against repeal. The defectors cited a lack of a clear substitute was the cause for their vote against repeal; it was not due to their support of ObamaCare. Of note, these three Members sit in seats held by Democrats in the last Congress and districts which Obama carried in the last presidential election.