New ObamaCare ‘Repeal’ Bill Would Cut $78 Billion From California's Federal Health Spending: Study

WASHINGTON, DC — In a last-ditch attempt to overhaul the American health care system and at least partially fulfill their promise to “repeal and replace Obamacare,” Republicans are rushing forward to try to pass new legislation by a Sept. 30 deadline. Doing so would cut $215 billion from the federal spending on health insurance by 2026, according to a study released Wednesday.

California, for example, would lose $78 billion in federal healthcare funding by 2026 under the new law. That's a 13 percent reduction. Georgia, however, would receive an extra $10 billion, a 12 percent increase.

The Congressional Budget Office was given no opportunity to determine how many people would lose healthcare under the proposal, but most estimates put the number in the tens of millions.

Overall, more states (34) would see a decrease in federal healthcare funding.(Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news from your California neighborhood. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app. Also, be sure to follow your local Patch on Facebook!)

"A reduction in federal subsidies for health insurance is likely to result in more people being uninsured," said Caroline Pearson, a senior vice president at the health industry consulting firm Avalere, which conducted the study. The study did not estimate the impact on insurance coverage.

The Graham-Cassidy bill, co-sponsored by Republican senators Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy, is in many ways more dramatic than previous versions of Obamacare "repeal" bills. It essentially ends the federal spending on Obamacare insurance subsidies and Medicaid expansion, instead giving states lump sums of money to cover their residents' healthcare costs. States that expanded Medicaid would get less money than they do now, while those that didn't expand would get more.

States that voted for President Donald Trump would not be immune from cuts, though deep-blue California and New York face the deepest reductions. West Virginia, a Trump bastion, would see a $1 billion cut from 2020 to 2026.

• How To Call Your Senators About The Graham-Cassidy Health Care Reform Bill

South Carolina senator Graham has been one of its most prominent defenders.

“Instead of a Washington-knows-best approach like Obamacare, our legislation empowers those closest to the health care needs of their communities to provide solutions,” he said in a statement. “Our bill takes money and power out of Washington and gives it back to patients and states.”

Republicans are rushing to pass the bill by Sept. 30, before the expiration of a procedural measure the Senate is using push the legislation through without it being filibustered by Democrats. Because of the time crunch and unlike the other healthcare bills Congress has considered, the Graham-Cassidy plan will not be fully evaluated by the Congressional budget office before a vote can take place.
Without a CBO evaluation, it’s very difficult to know how the law will impact insurance premiums, the level of health coverage or the federal deficit.

After promising for seven years to “repeal and replace Obamacare,” Republicans are under intense pressure to pass some form of healthcare reform. So far, though, disagreements in the party about how to proceed and what kind of health care system they want, have scuttled previous attempts. While some GOP lawmakers favor an extreme approach that would completely repeal all Obama-era spending, taxes and regulations related to healthcare, others propose more incremental and less disruptive changes.

In addition to Vice President Mike Pence's tie-breaking vote, Republicans need 50 lawmakers to pass the bill through the Senate before it can go to the House of Representatives. It's unclear if they currently have enough votes, as at least four Republicans are thought to have serious doubts about the bill and others might be quietly opposed.

By Cody Fenwick (Patch National Staff) / The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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