The Senate is heading toward a high-stakes health care vote on Thursday that could shape insurance costs for more than 20 million Americans. However, both sides admit the vote is less about passing a bill and more about drawing a political line.
Thune pitches the GOP’s competing plan
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday that Republicans will put forward their own bill, the Health Care Freedom for Patients Act. The act redirects federal subsidy dollars to health savings accounts rather than to insurance companies.
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“This is a failed program, and it does nothing but drive premiums up, and the increase in premiums, who’s that going to? That’s going to the insurance companies,” Thune said. He argued that the GOP plan “will bring insurance premiums down, it will be fiscally responsible, and it will get us away from the practice of giving the money all to the insurance companies and put it back in the hands of the patients.”
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., echoed that argument, saying patients, not insurers, should have control.
“Make insurance companies compete for the people who are actually paying the bills, the taxpayers,” he said.
The GOP plan aligns closely with President Trump’s repeated insistence that federal health dollars should bypass insurers entirely.
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Democrats blast GOP plan as deceptive
Democrats countered with sharp criticism and a contrast.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., called the Republican proposals “a ruse and a sham.” He argued that they would mask the fact that GOP senators are blocking the extension of subsidies that keep premiums affordable for roughly 22 million ACA enrollees.
“The American people are not dumb,” Blumenthal said. “They see that these sham proposals for health care savings accounts and tax credits are simply a ruse and a sham by Republicans to disguise the fact that they are blocking the extension of health care subsidies that make insurance affordable.”
Democrats will push a clean three-year extension of the enhanced tax credits on Thursday, but it is not expected to get the 60 votes needed to advance.
A high-stakes vote unlikely to change policy
Thune acknowledged openly that neither bill, the Democratic extension nor the GOP HSA plan, is expected to become law.
He called the Democratic bill “a messaging vote” and suggested Republicans will reassess their options only after Thursday’s vote plays out.
Democrats, meanwhile, want Republicans on record voting against the subsidies before they expire in January. It’s a pressure point for swing-state GOP senators whose constituents face double-digit premium hikes next year.
The stakes: higher premiums for millions
Without congressional action, premiums for ACA enrollees are expected to rise by at least $1,000 on average. KFF estimates premiums could more than double for some enrollees once enhanced credits expire. And more than 20 million Americans could see immediate price increases.
