Jake Jones
Pence Defends GOP Health Care Plan In Ky., Where Obamacare Had Success
The vice president defended the GOP health care plan in a state where Obamacare cut the uninsured rate by nearly half.
LEARN MOREMay 3, 2017
After a last-minute amendment, Republican leaders say their health care plan has enough votes to pass.
If that's the case, House Speaker Paul Ryan will bring the bill to the floor for a vote on Thursday.
The magic number is 216; the GOP was a few votes shy of that threshold only a day ago.
But after some phone calls from the president to wary Republicans, along with a new amendment that adds even more money to the cash pot for "high-risk" patients, a vote seems like it could happen.
Fred Upton, a moderate Republican from Michigan, was a big "no" vote until he met with the president Wednesday. They drafted an amendment that put an additional $8 billion over five years into the high-risk pool fund. The bill had $130 billion set aside for the fund before the amendment was tacked on.
Thankfully for the GOP, all but one member of the House Freedom Caucus still supports the bill after the added amendment. The ultra-conservative group was responsible for keeping the bill from making it to the floor back in March.
The bill would still have to get through the Senate. But getting it through the House would be a huge win for both President Donald Trump and the GOP.
