Trump, Senate Republicans reportedly can't agree on who should write ObamaCare replacement


It's a game of political hot potato, with President Trump urging Senate Republicans to come up with a replacement for the Affordable Care Act — and Senate Republicans arguing that's something the White House should do, The Washington Post reports.
Many Republican lawmakers think it's a terrible idea to try to replace the ACA, also known as ObamaCare, ahead of the 2020 elections, noting it won't even be possible with a divided Congress. Yet Trump called several GOP senators on Tuesday and Wednesday, trying to pressure them into writing new laws, the Post reports. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) told Fox News on Wednesday the White House should write the GOP plan, not Congress. "We don't need 12 of them," he said. "We need one solution."
In a filing Monday to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department argued that the ACA should be invalidated. Should the law be struck down, more than 20 million people would lose their health insurance. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) asked Trump to avoid going through the courts to get rid of ObamaCare, a senior GOP official told the Post, but Trump ignored him.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wy.) said he spoke with Trump on Wednesday morning, and told the Post the president is "100 percent committed to ensuring that people with pre-existing conditions get covered." White House aides said administration officials do not have a plan, but are looking at something Barrasso has put together involving short-term insurance "free from ObamaCare's burdensome mandates."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
The best shows to see at Edinburgh Fringe 2025
The Week Recommends The world's biggest arts festival is back with an incredible line-up
-
Wonsan-Kalma: North Korea's new 'mammoth' beach resort
Under the Radar Pyongyang wants to boost tourism but there won't be many foreign visitors to Kim Jong Un's 'pet project'
-
The 5 best TV reboots of all time
The Week Recommends Finding an entirely new cast to play beloved characters is harder than it looks
-
Measles cases surge to 33-year high
Speed Read The infection was declared eliminated from the US in 2000 but has seen a resurgence amid vaccine hesitancy
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change
Speed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sick
speed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Trump seeks to cut drug prices via executive order
speed read The president's order tells pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, but it will likely be thrown out by the courts
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths