Influential Republican Attacks Party’s New Health Care Bill

The New York Times reports:

The former chairman of one of the House committees that drafted legislation to repeal and replace large parts of the Affordable Care Act came out against a new version of the bill on Tuesday, saying the measure now “torpedoes” protections for people with pre-existing medical conditions.

Representative Fred Upton of Michigan, the former chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, declared on a local radio show, “I cannot support the bill with this provision in it,” just as House Speaker Paul D. Ryan was insisting that the legislation would protect the sick.

The loss of Mr. Upton, an influential Republican voice on health care, was a huge blow, and it came as Republican leaders faced an onslaught of advocacy groups, political attack ads and even a late-night talk show host, Jimmy Kimmel, saying the bill would harm the nation’s most vulnerable citizens. Mr. Upton was explicit: The concessions made to win over the hard-line conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus were costing the leadership support from more moderate Republicans.

“I’m not at all comfortable with removing that protection,” Mr. Upton said of the pre-existing condition concession.

Some Republicans don't want a real market in health insurance.