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

Trendingnow

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

3

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion

1

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

2

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

3

‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
HealthDonald Trump

GOP Splinters on Obamacare Replacement Ahead of Trump’s Address to Congress

By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 28, 2017, 2:44 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

There’s an elephant in the room for the party of elephants, and its name is Obamacare.

You’d think that the GOP would be speeding through a structured dismantling of the health law they’ve been maligning for the better part of a decade given the party’s control of the House, the Senate, and the White House. But Republicans are decidedly split on how to proceed as President Donald Trump is slated to give his first-ever address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday night.

Congressional leaders including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan reportedly want Trump to offer more details on health care policy and an Obamacare replacement strategy in his speech, according to CNN. Specifically, they want him to come out and endorse the House’s recently-leaked Obamacare replacement blueprint.

It’s not hard to see why. On Monday, two powerful conservative leaders in the House declared the blueprint unacceptable because it relies on giving people refundable tax credits to purchase insurance – a policy mechanism that, in a very rough sense, resembles Obamacare’s subsidies to buy mandated health coverage (and is therefore being slammed by conservatives as just another entitlement program).

“There are serious problems with what appears to be our current path to repeal and replace Obamacare,” said Rep. Mark Walker of North Carolina, who leads an influential 170-member bloc of conservative lawmakers called the Republican Study Committee, adding that he could not “in good conscience” vote for such policies. Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows said he’d also oppose the plan.

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

The ideological tug-of-war between the GOP’s various factions highlights why former House Speaker John Boehner recently said that a wide-ranging repeal-and-replace is “not what’s going to happen.”

“In the 25 years that I served in the United States Congress, Republicans never, ever one time agreed on what a healthcare proposal should look like. Not once,” said Boehner during a health care conference in Florida.

But House leadership tried to quash the intra-party tension narrative in a slew of statements Tuesday. “[The blueprint is] no longer even a viable draft that we’re working off of,” said Majority Whip Steve Scalise, the House’s number three Republican. “I feel at the end of the day when we get everything done and right, we’re going to be unified on this,” Speaker Paul Ryan asserted during a Tuesday press conference.

The implication is that (not-so) small quibbles over measures such as the tax credits won’t ultimately derail the overall repeal-and-replace strategy. After all, the blueprint contains a host of policies long sought by conservatives, including nixing Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion, an expansion of health savings accounts that individuals can contribute to, rolling back the health law’s various mandates and taxes, and dismantling the essential health benefits package that insurers had to provide under Obamacare.

But there are still many open questions about what effect such changes will have on insurance markets and Americans’ health care costs. For instance, it’s unclear how preserving guaranteed insurance eligibility for people with pre-existing medical conditions can work without the unpopular coverage mandate (since people could then just buy insurance when they get sick, bankrupting insurers), or how governments would fund historically pricey “high-risk pools” for the sickest Americans. Depending on the final policy ingredient list, the individual insurance market could actually become even more expensive and tumultuous, including in the regions where Obamacare was actually working well.

Then there’s the issue of what Trump himself wants. Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price has told Congressional leaders that the White House is largely on board with the House GOP’s blueprint. But Trump has presented a scattershot list of ideas when it comes to health care. He’s endorsed policies like direct drug price negotiation in Medicare (usually a Democratic wish list item that’s despised by drug makers) while simultaneously promising to slash other regulations on the biopharma industry; he famously promised “insurance for everybody” yet ostensibly supports benefit cuts and a rollback of the Medicaid expansion, which has covered millions of the poorest Americans. Just how much detail Trump will present in tonight’s speech – or whether he’ll stick to a more vague “rally around the leader” approach to galvanize the legislative troops – is unclear.

In a meeting with major health insurance company CEOs Monday, the president employed his well-known penchant for bombast, promising a “fantastic” replacement plan that the industry would love. “A very competitive plan, costs will come down, health care will go up very substantially. People will like it a lot,” he said while slamming Obamacare’s affect on health care.

It’s one thing to make those aspirational claims. But the actual policy details will determine their viability. We’ll find out soon enough if we’re getting some tonight.

About the Author
By Sy Mukherjee
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

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
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Health

The American Heart Association has a new number for daily coffee—and a warning if you go over it
Successlifestyle
The American Heart Association has a new number for daily coffee—and a warning if you go over it
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 22, 2026
2 hours ago
The Best Fiber Supplements of 2026: Tested and Reviewed
HealthDietary Supplements
The Best Fiber Supplements of 2026: Tested and Reviewed
By Christina SnyderJuly 21, 2026
13 hours ago
A family crisis inspired Bill Ackman to spend $260 million to create a massive brain research institute in Manhattan
InnovationBill Ackman
A family crisis inspired Bill Ackman to spend $260 million to create a massive brain research institute in Manhattan
By Jeff John RobertsJuly 21, 2026
14 hours ago
traffic
HealthAutos
Rich countries have cut road deaths by more than 30% in 30 years—but about 90% of fatal crashes now happen in poorer nations
By Mike Stobbe and The Associated PressJuly 21, 2026
20 hours ago
Three women chop their way into the record books at Lumberjack World Championships
North AmericaWisconsin
Three women chop their way into the record books at Lumberjack World Championships
By The Associated Press and Ellen SchmidtJuly 20, 2026
1 day ago
Ferran Torres
SuccessWorld Cup
Spain’s Ferran Torres scored the winning goal in the World Cup—but just four years ago, he was in therapy and stuck in a ‘bottomless pit’
By Emma BurleighJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
Cybersecurity
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 21, 2026
13 hours ago
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
Success
‘I want to die broke’: Billionaire philanthropist Denny Sanford dies after giving away $4 billion
By Sydney LakeJuly 20, 2026
2 days ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
17 hours ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
18 hours ago
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
AI
'Dr. Doom' Nouriel Roubini says we're headed for universal basic income or 'some form of socialism' as AI revolutionizes work—He calls that optimistic
By Jason MaJuly 18, 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.