Republicans are working with the Congressional Budget Office to work out details of its reconciliation bill that will repeal and replace parts of the ACA, The Hill reports.
These details include tax credits, high-risk pool funding and Medicaid changes, according to the report. Due to the nature of the reconciliation process, only a simple majority vote is required to pass the bill and filibusters are blocked. However, it can only address budgetary aspects of the law, so Republicans will have to achieve some level of Democratic support for any sidecar bills they want to pass.
Among the elements of the reconciliation bill Congress and the CBO are working on, changes to Medicaid are the most controversial, according to The Hill. This is because representatives from many Republican-led states that expanded Medicaid under the ACA want to keep their funding and coverage, according to the report. Any issues with Medicaid will need to be resolved so Republicans have enough votes to pass the bill.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is optimistic that a consensus can be formed by the end of March, according to the report. The House plans to complete a markup of the bill by March 1.
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