The GOP needs these three senators to pass repeal and replace

Jack Crowe, DCNF

The revised GOP health care bill released Thursday failed to have the immediate desired impact, as two Republican senators remain opposed to bringing the bill to a vote, while an additional GOP senator remains undecided.

GOP Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, both of whom voiced opposition to the original bill, said that they remained opposed to moving the revised and updated draft to a procedural vote. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, who opposed the original draft, was undecided on the revised draft as of Thursday afternoon.

The bill’s prospects for success remain tenuous, as the GOP can’t afford any more than two defectors if it hopes to pass the bill under Senate budget resolution rules.

GOP leadership won the support of conservative Texas Sen. Ted Cruz through the inclusion of a provision that he introduced with GOP Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, which allows providers to offer plans that don’t comply with Obamacare requirements as long as they also offer at least one Obamacare compliant option.

This provision did not go far enough to appease conservative Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has repeatedly called for a more comprehensive repeal of Obamacare. GOP Sens. Rob Portman of Ohio and Susan Collins of Maine joined Paul in his opposition.

Collins has vocally opposed the substantial cuts to Medicaid included in the original draft of the bill and maintained in the most recent revision. “My strong intention and current inclination is to vote no on the motion to proceed,” Collins told reporters after the new draft of the bill was released.

Portman, who came out against the original bill largely due to a lack of sufficient funding for opioid abuse prevention, remained agnostic when asked about his views on the revised draft.

“He will review the text of the new bill and CBO analysis before making any decisions on this new version,” Portman’s office told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The Ohio Senator is likely hedging his support while waiting to see how the steep Medicaid cuts will effect his home state, as the revised draft includes $45 million in government funding for opioid abuse prevention.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is expected to release a report on the revised bill early next week, and the score will likely have a significant impact on the GOP lawmakers who remain on the fence.

The CBO report on the initial Senate health care bill, which indicated that 22 million more people would be uninsured by 2026, was a major factor in delaying the vote on the bill.

Editor’s Note: This article originally stated that Sen. Portman would vote no on the health care bill. This was based on a reporter’s tweet who asked Portman his position. Portman’s office contacted The Daily Caller News Foundation to clarify that the senator expressed he had not yet made a decision. This article has been updated to reflect that position.

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