Republicans might be planning an ObamaCare trap for Democrats

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last updated 2 December 2016

Even if Congressional Republicans vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act first thing next year, there's a chance President Obama's signature healthcare law won't actually be going anywhere until 2020. Politico reported Thursday that Republicans are toying with the idea of installing a delayed effective date for the repeal to put a clear deadline on coming up with a replacement plan. "I think once it's repealed, you will have hopefully fewer people playing politics and [instead] coming together to try to find the best policy," House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told Politico. He also noted that if there is "a date certain that something's going away … you know you have to have something done."

Politico noted this sort of strategy has been used by Congress before, pointing to the "'fiscal cliff' days, when Congress imposed simultaneous deadlines to raise the debt ceiling, extend expiring tax cuts, and fund the government with the intent of creating "irresistible political pressure." Taking this approach with Americans' access to healthcare, however, poses "significant risks," Politico said. Insurance companies could ignore the three-year delay and opt out of ObamaCare as soon as the vote happens, Democrats could refuse to budge — and there's always the chance that a replacement plan won't come to fruition by the time those three years are up.