• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Health

The GOP Can Now Pass a Health Care Bill That’s Basically Just a Blank Piece of Paper

By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 25, 2017, 4:57 PM ET
Senate Lawmakers Address The Media After Their Weekly Policy Luncheons
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 12: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks during a news briefing after the Republican weekly policy luncheon July 12, 2016 at the Capitol in Washington, DC. Senate GOPs held a weekly policy luncheon to discuss the Republican agenda. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)Alex Wong — Getty Images

After a successful preliminary health care vote on Tuesday, Senate GOP leaders may have a new plan to get their health legislation over the finish line: pass what, in effect, could amount to a blank legislative check.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell began a successful “motion to proceed” vote on the chamber’s Obamacare repeal bill around 2:30 pm Tuesday. This was a procedural vote, not one on any particular piece of legislation. In fact, having secured those 50 votes on the motion to proceed (plus a necessary tie-breaking vote from Vice President Mike Pence) the Senate must now move on to followup debate on multiple health care bills being tossed around by GOP leadership in the coming days. “Let the voting take us where it will,” as McConnell put it while presiding over the vote.

Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, who has consistently opposed the GOP efforts, were the only Republican Senators to oppose the motion in addition to all Democrats.

Click here to subscribe to Brainstorm Health Daily, our brand new newsletter about health innovations.

But now that the procedural hurdle has been passed, the broader health bills that will (reportedly) be considered in the coming days, in the form of “amendments” that would supplant the basic legislative vehicle the Senate used to begin official debate Tuesday, face an uncertain future. These include multiple versions of the Senate’s Better Care Reconciliation Act and a “repeal-and-delay” strategy, each of which is potentially doomed thanks to previously stated opposition from a mix of conservatives and moderates. However, there are reports that the GOP’s newest plan is a so-called “skinny repeal”—legislation that would undo: Obamacare’s individual mandate requiring people to carry health insurance or pay a penalty; a mandate on employers to cover full time workers; and a tax on medical device companies.

Those are some of the most unpopular parts of Obamacare. (Though it’s important to note the Congressional Budget Office and other nonpartisan scorekeepers have projected that repealing the individual mandate—which is meant to prevent people from only buying guaranteed insurance coverage when they’re sick—would lead to massive premium increases.) But there’s almost zero chance that’s the legislation that could ultimately reach President Trump’s desk.

For one, it doesn’t do much to actually dismantle Obamacare—it simply addresses some of its enforcement and funding mechanisms. That’s a far cry from the far-reaching American Health Care Act passed by the more conservative House of Representatives earlier this year, which would gut numerous Obamacare protections and massively scale back the Medicaid program for the poor and disabled, as well as from the BCRA.

So what’s the goal here? Essentially, passing a “skinny repeal” could launch a “conference committee” with the House that would, ostensibly, produce a final, final health care deal between the two legislative chambers that would, in all political likelihood, look little like a skinny repeal (if that even passes). In fact, Arizona Sen. John McCain himself—who made a dramatic return to the Senate on Tuesday following a recent brain cancer diagnosis—slammed the “shell” health care bill (it’s unclear exactly which possible version he was referring to), in a speech to the Senate just minutes after he voted “aye” on the motion to proceed. He called on a bipartisan bill to shore up health insurance markets.

For now, it’s still unclear what kind of health care legislation the Senate will vote on, what may ultimately pass, and what the future holds for negotiations with the House if something does pass.

About the Author
By Sy Mukherjee
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Health

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Health

Forget quiet quitting—4 in 10 millennials are taking ‘quiet vacations’ and checking out of work (and the country) on company dime instead
SuccessMillennials
Forget quiet quitting—4 in 10 millennials are taking ‘quiet vacations’ and checking out of work (and the country) on company dime instead
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMay 25, 2026
2 hours ago
r
HealthHealth
The quiet $8 billion crisis: long COVID costs keep rising as Washington looks away
By Bruce Y. Lee, Hannah Dimmick and The ConversationMay 24, 2026
22 hours ago
mental
Healthmental health
500,000 people were locked in state psychiatric hospitals. Their descendants can’t find out why
By Mike Stobbe, Nick Lichtenberg and The Associated PressMay 24, 2026
23 hours ago
Someone leafs through titles stacked in a library
AIResearch
AI hallucinations are infiltrating expert work—and entering the permanent body of knowledge
By Tristan BoveMay 24, 2026
1 day ago
d
HealthHospitals
Meet the hospital dogs ‘making a real difference’ by getting sick kids to smile
By Laura Ungar and The Associated PressMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
Ashley Yetman
Commentarydisruption
Everyone is blaming AI for the death of ‘craft.’ Take a good look in the mirror
By Ashley YetmanMay 23, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
4 days ago
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
Lifestyle
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
By Sasha RogelbergMay 24, 2026
1 day ago
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Real Estate
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
By Sydney LakeMay 24, 2026
1 day ago
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Success
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
By Emma BurleighMay 22, 2026
3 days ago
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
Success
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
By Nick LichtenbergMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
Microsoft reports are exposing AI's real cost problem: Using the tech is more expensive than paying human employees
AI
Microsoft reports are exposing AI's real cost problem: Using the tech is more expensive than paying human employees
By Jake AngeloMay 22, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.