Senate Majority Leader John Thune met with a group of GOP senators on Wednesday as Republicans quietly discuss possible paths forward on health care once the government reopens.
The group met to talk about ideas including what to do about soon-to-expire Affordable Care Act subsidies — the centerpiece of Democrats’ demands amid the three-week shutdown — according to three people granted anonymity to describe the meeting.
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) were among the senators who gathered in Thune’s office.
Barrasso, asked if they talked about the ACA, said they talked about “a lot of different things.”
“We just continue to meet and talk about the path forward,” Barrasso said, while reiterating the GOP’s firm stance that nothing will be negotiated until Democrats agree to reopen the government.
Still, Republicans have been discussing internally what their party’s position should be, including on the subsidies that will expire at the end of the year. The group in Thune’s office represents an array of viewpoints across the conference.
Some Republicans, such as Scott, have pushed for letting them expire. Others, including Thune, have kept the door open to extending them so long as new curbs are implemented. Those could include income limits, fraud-prevention language and other potential changes to try to shore up GOP support.
Republicans are also discussing attaching other health care proposals to try to sweeten the pot for conservatives. In addition to the conversations among GOP senators, talks have ramped up within the House Republican conference and with the White House.
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