House Republicans on Wednesday night passed a health care reform bill aimed at increasing spending as expiring Obamacare tax breaks galvanize support for change ahead of the midterm elections.
New party supported by the Republican Party legislationThe bill, introduced by Iowa Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks, passed the House on a near party-line 216-211 vote.
Kentucky GOP Rep. Thomas Massie was the only GOP member to vote no. Not a single Democrat supported the bill.
Miller-Meeks said Wednesday on the House floor that the new legislation reduces health care costs by “providing transparency” and introducing “common sense solutions.”
“By lowering premiums through choice and competition, expanding association health plans, we are giving small businesses and self-employed workers the purchasing power of large employers, reducing premiums by as much as 30%,” Miller-Meeks said. “By being transparent about drug pricing, we are hiring pharmacy benefit managers who have long worked behind the scenes as middlemen, collecting hidden fees while prescription prices rise.”
WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 16: U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-IL) speaks on behalf of (from left) Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN), House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-IL), and House Republican Conference Chairman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) is listened to during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on December 16. 2025 in Washington, DC. House Republican leadership held a press conference to discuss the GOP agenda. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Kentucky Republican Representative Brett Guthrie further argued that the ACA is an “unsustainable” system that has seen steep premium increases since its inception.
“Health care costs have nearly doubled since Obamacare was enacted. Health plan options have been gutted by Democratic overreach, and millions of Americans across the country are saddled with medical debt,” Guthrie said on the House floor Wednesday. “Obamacare premiums have increased 80% since the program launched, with patients paying an average of $5,000 out of pocket to cover their deductible.” (CONNECTED: The Obamacare impasse drags on, but one healthcare solution could reduce medical costs across the country.)
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 22: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), joined by House Minority Leader Katherine Clark (D-MA) (L) and House Democratic Conference Chairman Pete Aguilar (R), speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill on October 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. The government shutdown continues for the 22nd day. (Photo by Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
However, the adoption of the law was difficult success petition from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
The New York Democrat successfully lobbied a majority of the House in support of a discharge petition requiring House Speaker Mike Johnson to hold a vote on a three-year extension of expanded ACA credits, thanks to the support of four moderate Republicans representing swing districts: Pennsylvania Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Rob Bresnahan and Ryan McKenzie and New York Rep. Mike Lawler.
“The pending bill does nothing for the 15 million Americans who are about to lose health insurance; for the one million children who are about to lose health insurance; for hundreds of hospitals that are closing or on the verge of closing,” Massachusetts Democratic Representative Katherine Clark said Wednesday. “Now that we have a bipartisan dismissal petition ready to be voted on today, can you find the time to do so? We are ready to vote, Mr. Speaker, you have the right to bring it up today. Let the will of the people be the will of the House of the People.” (CONNECTED: Four Republicans Sign Democratic Obamacare Petition to Force House Vote on Subsidies)
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 15: U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) speaks with reporters as he arrives for the House Republican Caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol on May 15, 2025 in Washington, DC. House Republicans met to discuss the Republican budget bill as they try to bring it to a vote next week. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
However, the three-year extension of loans was defeated in the Senate earlier in December for a vote promised as part of an agreement to end the October government shutdown over the same issue of expanded ACA loans. Jeffries' petition should also “mature” within seven legislative days, meaning the House vote on a three-year extension will not take place before the loans expire.
“I don't think the Senate will take up this issue. It's just posturing,” Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett told the Daily Caller News Foundation on Wednesday.
“We have to solve the problem, and pouring more money into a broken system is not going to solve the insurance problem,” Burchett said. “It’s untransportable, it’s unaffordable, and the only people who thrive on it are the insurance companies, and they’re getting fat.”
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