The Senate rejected dueling health care bills Thursday, all but guaranteeing that Obamacare subsidies used by more than 20 million Americans will lapse at the end of the year.
Senators voted 51-48 on advancing a GOP health care plan that would have expanded health savings accounts as an alternative to the expiring tax credits. Democrats’ plan to extend the Covid-era enhanced subsidies for three years also received a 51-48 vote. Both proposals fell well short of the 60 votes needed to vault a key procedural hurdle.
The votes both went largely, but not entirely, along party lines. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the only Republican to oppose the GOP plan. Meanwhile, Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Dan Sullivan of Alaska voted to advance the Democrats’ health care plan.
Paul said his party’s bill, written by Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Mike Crapo of Idaho, amounted to “Obamacare lite,” while Collins, Hawley and Murkowski have expressed sharp concerns about allowing the subsidies to expire.
Thursday’s Senate votes were part of a deal Senate Majority Leader John Thune made with Democrats to end the government shutdown that ended last month. Senators have widely acknowledged for weeks that the votes were aimed more at messaging than forcing through passable bipartisan compromise.
Still, a deal in the Senate was likely Congress’ best shot at preventing the subsidies from lapsing and raising premiums for many Americans who buy their insurance directly through Affordable Care Act exchanges. While the lapse will not completely eliminate the tax credits, they will revert back to pre-pandemic levels and many families could still see their premiums rise by $1,000 a year or more.
“Our bill is the last train leaving the station,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said ahead of the vote, urging Republicans to support the Democratic bill.
The House is similarly riven by partisan divides. Republican leaders have no plans at the moment to put a subsidy extension up for a vote before adjourning for the year next week. Democratic leaders in the chamber, like Senate Democrats, want to extend the expiring tax credits by three years; two bipartisan bills proposing shorter extensions are subject to discharge petitions that could force action — but not until next year.
Thune said if a bill is able to pass the House, “obviously we’ll take a look at it.” But he shared a note of skepticism, saying, “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
Rank-and-file senators are leaving the door open to trying to strike a last-minute bipartisan deal, but they are effectively out of time. The Senate is expected to adjourn next week until January, and, while bipartisan talks are ongoing, they’ve failed to gain momentum. Multiple sticky political fights, including a clash over abortion restrictions, would need to be resolved in a passable deal.
“I hope that after today they will feel like they’ve checked the messaging box and will get serious about actually doing something about the spiraling health care costs under Obamacare,” Thune said ahead of the vote. “Republicans are ready to get to work. I’m not sure yet if the Democrats are interested.”
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said she was open to negotiating long-term health care reforms but added that with time running short, extending the credits is the “easiest” immediate solution.
“We need to act now,” Shaheen said. “I know there are members in both parties who want to find a responsible path forward.”
Calen Razor contributed to this report.
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