U.S. Rep. Tom Reed, R-Corning, said Tuesday he expects Congress will vote within the next two weeks on repealing the Affordable Care Act.
Congressional Republicans on Monday released the American Health Care Act of 2017 which included things Reed said he has insisted on: covering pre-existing conditions, permitting children to stay on their parent’s health insurance until age 26, and maintaining expanded Medicaid provisions.
“I stand for repeal of the Affordable Care Act,” Reed reminded reporters during a telephone press conference Tuesday afternoon. “Obamacare is in a death spiral,” he said.
As a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, Reed will have a vote on the repeal and replacement of Obamacare.
Reed said he wanted to assure the 75,000 individuals in the 23rd Congressional District who are covered by Medicaid, will not be affected under the Republican bill.
He said he had a commitment to them so they would not lose their healthcare when the Affordable Care Act is repealed.
The repeal would be delayed until 2020, to give the states time to craft new means of covering the poor, Reed said. Republicans are proposing a series of age-based tax credits people can use to buy health insurance. He said states like New York would have to decide whether to continue its coverage to 138 percent of the poverty line.
Reed said the Republican plan includes language that would prohibit states like New York from passing along a share of the Medicaid costs. That would potentially save counties a lot of money which would be passed along in lower property taxes.
Reed said the repeal would eliminate excessive taxes and allow tax credits for people to purchase their own healthcare insurance.
The first step of the repeal and replacement package will be one that can be approved with 51 votes in the Senate. The replacement health plan will need to garner 60 votes to avoid a filibuster.
“My hope is that we will leave the partisanship behind,” Reed told reporters. He blasted Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and Democrat Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who both attacked the Republican plan on Monday.
“We still have to get healthcare delivery in a more efficient and effective manner,” Reed said. He described the Republican plan as “responsible, but prudent,” adding, that “doesn’t mean we can’t improve upon it — try to make it better.”
Reed said he’d had hoped that there would be some way to include health care cost containment in the Obamacare repeal, but that it could not be included in a Senate reconciliation vote.
Reed said he had not heard of reports President Donald Trump had tried to negotiate with Planned Parenthood to stop offering abortions.
Under the Hyde Amendment, federal funds are not to be used for abortions. Planned Parenthood received some federal family planning funding, but does not use those funds for abortion services.
“I am pro-life,” Reed said. “I have great concerns over any type of funding that potentially provide abortions.”
