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Healthcare Pulled from Senate Floor as “Skinny Repeal” Fails

In a dramatic vote late last night/early this morning, the Senate defeated by a vote of 49-51 the “skinny” repeal bill. In the end, Republicans Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski were joined by John McCain in siding with the Democrats to bring down the bill.  It was McCain who cast the deciding vote.

It was assumed by many that Collins and Murkowski would vote against the bill. However, how McCain was planning to vote was unknown going into the vote. In the end, he cast the crucial vote. When McCain voted ‘No,’ there were audible gasps on the Senate floor.

Additional background on how last night’s vote unfolded is available here and here.

What are the next steps?  Healthcare has been pulled from the Senate floor for now. After last night’s dramatic vote, a number of Republican committee chairmen suggested that they would be open to hearings on the issue moving forward.

Stay tuned for updates on possible further developments.