Senate OKs Republican bill to unravel health care law

The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to repeal the core of Obamacare, bringing Congress closer to sending legislation to President Barack Obama for the first time that would dismantle his signature domestic achievement.

It would also halt federal payments to the national women’s healthcare provider Planned Parenthood.

Last night in a historic vote, the U.S. Senate passed a reconciliation bill that guts major portions of Obamacare and bars Planned Parenthood from receiving Federal tax dollars in Medicaid reimbursements. Senators voted 52-47 to pass the legislation.

Republicans said an Obama veto – which the White House has promised – will underscore that a GOP triumph in next year’s presidential and congressional elections would mean repeal of the statute.

“So the fact that we blow off a day, two or three in the closing hours of this session for this political posturing, which is doomed to a presidential veto, is a waste of the time of the Senate”, said Democratic Sen. On Wednesday, government officials said health care spending grew previous year at 5.3 percent, in part because of the health law’s coverage expansion, the steepest climb since Obama took office.

Democrats say the 2010 Affordable Care Act – better known as Obamacare – has helped 17.6 million Americans gain medical coverage and has stopped insurance companies from refusing to insure patients with pre-existing conditions.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., mocked the Republicans’ “absurd attempt” to repeal the health care law and noted the large number of people – including in McConnell’s Kentucky – who’ve obtained coverage under the law. It would also cut federal funding to Planned Parenthood for one year.

Critics of the organization, many of whom seek to outlaw abortion in the United States, have falsely accused Planned Parenthood of selling fetal organs and body parts for profit following the release of secretly recorded videos by an anti-abortion activist in July. “They opposed the philosophy of it and they knew we were going to have a mess on our hands”, Sessions said.

“This legislation would repeal some of the more harmful aspects of the Affordable Care Act, including increased taxes and burdensome mandates, while giving us an opportunity to work toward a better plan”, Cochran said.

As they worked through the bill, senators voted on over a dozen amendments – all symbolic, since the measure was destined to never become law.

In another largely party-line vote, the House voted 240 to 189 to approve similar legislation in October, although changes to the language of the Senate version of the bill will require another vote in the House.

Sen. Tom Cotton also said Planned Parenthood has “proven itself unworthy of government support”. All Senate Republicans except Senators Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Susan Collins (R-ME) voted for the measure.