Some want a quick end, while others fear throwing 20 million people off their coverage virtually overnight.
.. A party rift was already emerging between lawmakers and advocacy groups who want a slow and orderly transition to give notice to the millions now covered — and those who want to repeal the entire law within minutes of Trump’s inauguration.
.. Heritage Action .. is demanding that Congress prepare a repeal bill that Trump could sign on Inauguration Day.
.. “It should crumble immediately because Americans can’t afford it,” said Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), a member of the Freedom Caucus who wants to see the individual mandate scrapped right away.
.. “There’s nothing you can do about that,” Roe said. “It’s going to take one to two years to reconstitute a marketplace.”
.. Complicating their discussions is the practical reality that they will have only one shot at passing a health bill using a difficult budget maneuver that prevents a Democratic filibuster.
.. The quickest thing a GOP administration could do is refuse to pay insurance companies the subsidies they make on behalf of low-income people. Insurers would face insurmountable costs and would be allowed to leave the markets almost immediately.
.. If Republicans aggressively attack the law through regulation, the law will quickly crumble because insurers will become unstable and customers would lose coverage with little notice. For some in the GOP, that’s the goal. But others fear that would generate backlash.
.. Some Republicans are worried about appearing reckless by getting rid of Obamacare without a new system in place, opening themselves up to accusations that they’re canceling consumers’ health plans
.. “Certainly in the House, they are running for office constantly, only two years to go again,” .. “Most of them are not going to want campaign ads in two years that say Mr. X or Mrs. X is responsible for throwing 20 million people off health insurance.”