Vowing to repeal the Affordable Care Act to give the “American people relief for Obamacare,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that the Senate owes Americans “at least that much.” McConnell believes he owes the people even more than that — the original plan was to “repeal and replace” Obamacare. But since replacement required a new healthcare bill that lawmakers could agree on, it hasn’t been doable. Repeal is still on the table, followed by what McConnell characterized as a “stable two-year transition period.”
“Too often,” McConnell said in addressing the Senate, “this discussion seems to veer into the abstract. These are not just numbers on a page. These are the lives of real people… We worked hard to provide them with a better way… We knew that it was the right thing to do… I regret that the efforts to repeal and immediately replace Obamacare will not be successful…That doesn’t mean we should give up.” McConnell said the bill to repeal will be the same one Congress passed in 2015, but which was then vetoed by Obama.
