- GOP Faces Make-or-Break Moment on Obamacare Repeal Politico by Rachael Bade, John Bresnahan, and Kyle Cheney—This week may be the last, best chance to get it done in the House. House Republican leaders and White House officials are increasingly confident about passing their long-stalled Obamacare replacement bill: More lawmakers than ever are committed to voting "yes," they say, and GOP insiders insist they're within striking distance of a majority. But the window of opportunity for Speaker Paul Ryan and his leadership team is closing fast. The House is scheduled to leave town for a one-week recess on Thursday, and some senior Republicans worry that failing to get it done by then would fritter away critical momentum.
- Pushing For Vote on Health Care Bill, Trump Seems Unclear on Its Details New York Times by Robert Pear—After two false starts on President Trump's promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Trump administration officials are pressing the House to vote on a revised version of the Republican repeal bill this week, perhaps as soon as Wednesday, administration officials said. And on Sunday, Mr. Trump insisted that the Republican health legislation would not allow discrimination against people with preexisting medical conditions, an assertion contradicted by numerous health policy experts as well as the American Medical Association. "Preexisting conditions are in the bill," the president said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "And I mandate it. I said has to be." Mr. Trump appeared to be unfamiliar with details of the amendment that would allow states to obtain a waiver permitting insurers to charge higher premiums based on a person's "health status." Nor did he explain how the Republicans' new health plan would produce "much lower premiums."
- Fears of Losing Preexisting Conditions Protection under GOP AP by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Alan Fram—From cancer to addiction, doctors and patient groups are warning that the latest Republican health care bill would gut hard-won protections for people with preexisting medical conditions. Some GOP moderates who may seal the legislation's fate are echoing those concerns. In a strongly worded statement this week, the American Medical Association said the Republican protections "may be illusory." The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network said the plan could take the nation back to a "patchwork system" that pushes costs on people with life-threatening conditions. Such stark messages may be connecting with lawmakers anxious about making the right decision on issues that touch every family.
- CBO Won't Have Score On Revised ObamaCare Bill Next Week The Hill by Jessie Hellmann—The budget scorekeeper for Congress is apparently a few weeks away from releasing an analysis of the GOP's revised ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bill. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) told House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) office Thursday that a score of the bill would not be ready this week or next. The score would detail the impacts the American Health Care Act could have on Obamacare enrollees. It's unclear when GOP leadership plans to call the bill for a vote, but they have said repeatedly it won't be on the floor until it has the support to pass. Many moderate Republicans would likely have issues with voting on the legislation without an updated CBO score.
- GOP Shuts Out Doctors, Experts, Democrats—Pretty Much Everybody—As They Work On Obamacare Repeal Los Angeles Times by Noam Levey—President Trump and House Republicans, in their rush to resuscitate a bill rolling back the Affordable Care Act, are increasingly isolating themselves from outside input and rejecting entreaties to work collaboratively, according to multiple healthcare officials who have tried to engage GOP leaders. And senior House Republicans and White House officials have almost completely shut out doctors, hospitals, patient advocates, and others who work in the health care system, industry officials say, despite pleas from many health care leaders to seek an alternative path that doesn't threaten protections for tens of millions of Americans.