In Their Own Words: Republicans Said Repeal And Delay Would Increase Premiums, Exacerbate Problems Within Healthcare System; “It Is Unsustainable And Impractical”
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Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY): “I mean, you have to both repeal and replace. And I think there ought not to be a great gap between the first step and the second.” VIDEO Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA): “A nonstarter. I’ll tell you, there will be uncertainty in the insurance markets. Premiums will rise for middle-class families.” VIDEO Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR): “I don’t think we can just repeal Obamacare and say we’re going to get the answer two years from now.” VIDEO Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): “I think most of you who know me, know that I will not support a reckless repeal process that leaves people hanging. Repeal must come along with a replacement that reforms and improves health care.” VIDEO Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY): DICKERSON: Let me switch to Obamacare. There’s a question of, you want to repeal it. You’re going to repeal it. What’s the-- when’s the replacement part going to get there? MCCONNELL: Well, soon. I mean, you have to both repeal and replace. And I think there ought not to be a great gap between the first step and the second. [CBS Face the Nation, 1/8/17; VIDEO] Then President-Elect Donald Trump: STAHL: And there's going to be a period if you repeal it and before you replace it, when millions of people could lose -– no? TRUMP: No, we're going to do it simultaneously. It'll be just fine. We're not going to have, like, a two-day period and we're not going to have a two-year period where there's nothing. It will be repealed and replaced. And we'll know. And it'll be great health care for much less money. So it'll be better health care, much better, for less money. Not a bad combination. [CBS 60 Minutes, 11/13/16] HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN): “Following the presidential election, President-elect Trump said on 60 minutes that replacement and repeal of Obamacare would be done ‘simultaneously.’ To me, that means at the same time. And then just today Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said that repeal and replacement of Obamacare would be done ‘concurrently.’ To me, ‘simultaneously’ and ‘concurrently’ means Obamacare should be finally repealed only when there are concrete, practical reforms in place that give Americans access to truly affordable health care. The American people deserve health care reform that’s done in the right way, for the right reasons, in the right amount of time. It’s not about developing a quick fix. It’s about working toward long-term solutions that work for everyone.” [Press Release, 1/10/17] Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN): “Alexander, chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, said at a hearing Wednesday: ‘I think of it as a collapsing bridge. . . . You send in a rescue team and you go to work to repair it so that nobody else is hurt by it and you start to build a new bridge, and only when that new bridge is complete, people can drive safely across it, do you close the old bridge. When it’s complete, we can close the old bridge, but in the meantime, we repair it. No one is talking about repealing anything until there is a concrete practical alternative to offer Americans in its place.’” [Washington Post, 2/2/17] Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO): “I just don’t think you can possibly get 50 Republicans to vote just to repeal.” [CQ, 7/10/17] Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA): WALLACE: And then there is the idea that President Trump offered in a tweet a few days ago, and let's put this up on the screen, "if Republican senators are unable to pass what they are working on now, they should immediately repeal and then replace at a later date." What you think of that? CASSIDY: A nonstarter. I’ll tell you, there will be uncertainty in the insurance markets. Premiums will rise for middle-class families. It gives all the power to people who actually don't believe in President Trump’s campaign pledges, who actually don't want to continue to cover and care for pre-existing conditions and to lower premiums. It gives them the stronger hand. I think it's wrong. I think it betrays President Trump’s campaign pledges. [Fox News Sunday, 7/9/17] Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA): “That said, there is a mandate from the American people not just to repeal but to replace.” [Floor Remarks, 1/17/17] Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME): “Many States, including Maine, are experiencing double-digit increases in premiums, causing increased costs for consumers and for taxpayers. So repeal and delay would only exacerbate this problem. I am pleased to see a growing consensus among Members of both the Senate and the House that we must fix ObamaCare, provide reforms at nearly the same time that we repeal the law, in order to protect families who rely on the program and to give insurers time to transition to a new marketplace that is based on more choices for consumers.” [Floor Remarks, 1/17/17] Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME): “Some of my colleagues have argued for immediate repeal without any replacement, an option I reject, for it risks leaving millions of vulnerable Americans without affordable health insurance and would undo important consumer protections provided by current law. Others have proposed repeal with a delayed effective date of 2 or 3 years to allow time for the Senate to devise legislation that would provide a better approach to health insurance. My concern with the repeal -and-delay plan is that the ObamaCare exchanges, already on very shaky financial ground, would go into a death spiral as consumers would face uncertainty and insurers would have no basis for pricing their policies.” [Floor Remarks, 1/17/17] Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME): “I just feel like we need a detailed framework, preferably specific legislation, to accompany the repeal effort so that we can reassure individuals who have been receiving subsidized insurance that they’re not going to fall through the cracks and so that the insurance markets have time to adjust to a dramatic change. The insurance markets cannot turn on a dime.” [Huffington Post, 1/5/17] Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN): “Repeal and replacement should take place simultaneously.” [Bloomberg, 1/5/17] Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN): “But as President-elect Trump has stated, repeal and replace should take place simultaneously, and this amendment will give the incoming administration more time to outline its priorities after its chief health care official assumes office and fully reviews the tools currently at his disposal.” [Press Release, 1/9/17] Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN): “‘There’s more and more concerns about not doing it simultaneously,’ Corker said. ‘You would think after six years we would have a pretty good sense of what we would like to do.’” [Politico, 1/9/17] Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR): COTTON: But I think it would not be the right path for us to repeal Obamacare without laying out a path forward, even if that path, say, transitions gradually over the next year to two years. TODD: But you’re saying you are not comfortable voting on a repeal without something concrete in place that people can see? COTTON: I think when we repeal Obamacare we need to have the solution in place moving forward. Again, that solution may be implemented in a deliberate fashion. But I don’t think we can just repeal Obamacare and say we’re going to get the answer two years from now. [MSNBC MTP Daily, 1/5/17] Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT): “In my view, we need to advance replacement policies in tandem with the repeal process. And then we can keep working on the other parts of the system.” [Washington Post, 2/2/17] Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA): “It is unsustainable and impractical, and it is wrong for us to say we are going to repeal ObamaCare without replacing it with a plan that we know works and has the opportunity.” [Floor Remarks, 1/11/17] Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): “I fear we may fall under the trap of repealing and not replacing and that would be bad for America.” [KTAR, 7/5/17] Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): “They have to be done together,” said Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, referring to efforts to repeal and replace the health law. “We don’t want to have people left out.” [NY Times, 12/6/16] Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): “We’re going to have to move quickly on the replacement so that people will not be left high and dry.” [Huffington Post, 1/5/17] Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS): “‘I am of the view that we can’t pull the rug out from under people who have been, in many instances, forced into Obamacare,’ said Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas. ‘So this will take some time to make certain that we protect people and their health care.’” [Bloomberg, 12/1/16] Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): “On the whole discussion again about repeal and replace, I know that this has been a subject of concern and anxiety for many. I think most of you who know me, know that I will not support a reckless repeal process that leaves people hanging. Repeal must come along with a replacement that reforms and improves health care. That expands access, improves affordability, and provides the flexibility that Alaska needs to develop our solutions. What I want are stability, certainty, and health care policies that really work for us in this state, that work for all Alaskans. That’s the direction that we need to go.” [Remarks to Alaska State Legislature, 2/22/17] Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): “With a new administration and a new Congress we have an opportunity to fulfill both of those commitments, but repeal and replace need to coincide – that’s simply common sense. That is why I’m proud to sign onto this amendment to give the committee process time to work, to allow stakeholders to share their solutions with us, and to ensure that our replacement legislation provides Americans with certainty, access, and truly affordable options for their healthcare needs.” [Press Release, 1/10/17] Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY): “I think it's imperative that Republicans do a replacement simultaneous to repeal,” … “We need to think through how we do this, and it's a huge mistake for Republicans if they do not vote for replacement on the same day as we vote for repeal,” Paul said. [Politico, 1/4/17]
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