Category: Health/Medical

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.

After defeating a repeal-and-replace measure during the first day of debate, the Senate turned down yesterday a straight repeal of the Affordable Care Act by a vote of 45- 54. A myriad of alternatives and amendments are expected to be voted on as the Senate continues its consideration, including a “skinny” repeal, the details of which are not yet final but will most likely include at least the elimination of the individual and employer mandates as well as the tax on medical devices.

The current goal of the Senate leadership appears to be to get even a small legislative package passed by the chamber so that it can go to conference with the House to attempt to craft a new bill.  Some believe that the “skinny” repeal bill could serve as that vehicle.  Whether that is the case remains to be seen.

The debate and votes are expected to last long into the evening.

After agreeing to start debate on healthcare yesterday by a vote of 51-50, a vote on which Vice President Mike Pence cast the tie-breaking vote, the Senate turned back the first option it considered by a vote of 43-57, with nine Republicans joining all 48 Democrats to oppose the measure.

According to the rules governing this issue, the Senate has 20 hours to debate the healthcare legislation.  During the remainder of the issue, the Senate is expected to consider a number of other options, including a repeal-with-a-two-year-delay as well as a more limited package that would eliminate the individual and employer mandates and the medical device tax.

The Senate Republican leadership has decided to schedule a vote on a “motion to proceed” on the healthcare legislation for later this afternoon.  Many observers view the decision by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) to return to Washington to vote as a positive sign for those pushing to start debate on a healthcare bill.  However, the outcome of the vote, which is basically on a motion to start debate on the issue, still remains up in there.