House Republicans still don't have the votes for their health-care bill

House Republicans are still scrambling for health-care votes
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If House Republican leaders convince all roughly 22 uncommitted and undecided GOP lawmakers to support the current version of the American Health Care Act (AHCA), they could probably pass the bill before leaving for an 11-day break on Friday. As of Tuesday night, they don't have a vote scheduled. After days of personal lobbying by House Speaker Paul Ryan, President Trump, and Vice President Mike Pence, a few Republican holdouts have switched to yes, including Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.).

But GOP leaders have also suffered some defections, including Rep. Billy Long (R-Mo.) and, on Tuesday, Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), a former chairman of the committee that wrote several ObamaCare repeal bills and an influential GOP voice on health care. Upton, like Long and other mostly center-right holdouts, expressed concern about provisions in the current version of the AHCA that would potentially allow insurers in states that requested waivers to charge people with pre-existing conditions more for insurance, pricing some of them out of the market. On a radio show, Upton said the current bill "torpedoes" safeguards for people with pre-existing conditions, even as Ryan was trying to assure members it doesn't.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.