Republican Alternative to Obamacare Gaining Momentum, Bill’s Sponsor Says

Cybercast News Service ^ | November 21, 2013 - 8:19 AM | Susan Jones

[Olog-hai]

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) says increasing access to health care and lowering health care costs are at the heart of his bill that stands as an alternative to Obamacare.

“We drafted this bill with a working group of members of the Republican Study Committee, which I chair,” Scalise told Fox News’ Neil Cavuto on Wednesday. He said momentum is building for the American Health Care Reform Act, which is being taken “very seriously.”

“It’s a very concise bill. It’s less than 200 pages long. It’s not the 2,700-page bill that Obamacare is,” Scalise said.

“And also we have over 100 members of Congress now that have co-sponsored it. And we had medical doctors who serve in Congress, like Dr. Phil Roe, help write this bill. This is a bill based on putting patients back in charge of their health care and lowering the cost and getting government out of health care decisions.” …

[98ZJ USMC]

On principle, I agree with you, but as a doc I know that it is very difficult at this point to ‘keep Washington out of it’ because we have built a system for years and years and years that is dependent upon federal programs/monies (e.g. Medicare).

As much as I hate to, reality compels me to agree completely. Once Medicare and Medicaid started, that was it. We will never get government out of healthcare, period. Whatever reforms this bill proposes (I have not read it) it must include top to bottom tort reform with serious consequences for frivolous/fraudulent litigation and absolute caps on monetary awards.

[SoFloFreeper]

Doesn’t matter; the Senate now is a rubber stamp for Valerie’s judges, so any Republican plan that miraculously gets passed will be ruled unconstitutional.

[Amagi]

The Republican "alternative to ObamaCare" plan must begin with massive tort reform plus significant elimination of most of the massive overhead-skyrocketing-middle-men-pencil-pushers currently interposed between the doctor/patient relationship (i.e., address the parasite industries sucking on the healthcare system) to address the problems with the cost of healthcare.
In short, return to free market principles.

[Right Wing Assault]

...getting government out of health care decisions.

Aw, shucks, does that mean we can't have death panels?

[Graewoulf]

Obamacare Lite is any Insurance Bill that any Republican can dream up.

We voted down Romneycare in 2012.

In 2013 Obamacare is a disastrous failure.

Now RINOs are proving that they are incapable of learning from the lessons of History.

WE DO NOT WANT GOVERNMENT RUN INSURANCE !

[Graewoulf]

MAKE DC LISTEN: TELL YOUR SENATORS, ESPECIALLY THE DEMOCRATS !

State .... Senator .... Party .... Phone

AK Mark Begich D (202) 224-3004
AK Lisa Murkowski R (202) 224-6665
AL Jeff Sessions R (202) 224-4124
AL Richard C. Shelby R (202) 224-5744
AR John Boozman R (202) 224-4843
AR Mark L. Pryor D (202) 224-2353
AZ Jeff Flake R (202) 224-4521
AZ John McCain R (202) 224-2235
CA Barbara Boxer D (202) 224-3553
CA Dianne Feinstein D (202) 224-3841
CO Michael F. Bennet D (202) 224-5852
CO Mark Udall D (202) 224-5941
CT Richard Blumenthal D (202) 224-2823
CT Christopher Murphy D (202) 224-4041
DE Thomas R. Carper D (202) 224-2441
DE Christopher A. Coons D (202) 224-5042
FL Bill Nelson D (202) 224-5274
FL Marco Rubio R (202) 224-3041
GA Saxby Chambliss R (202) 224-3521
GA Johnny Isakson R (202) 224-3643
HI Mazie K. Hirono D (202) 224-6361
HI Brian Schatz D (202) 224-3934
IA Chuck Grassley R (202) 224-3744
IA Tom Harkin D (202) 224-3254
ID Mike Crapo R (202) 224-6142
ID James E. Risch R (202) 224-2752
IL Richard J. Durbin D (202) 224-2152
IL Mark Kirk R (202) 224-2854
IN Daniel Coats R (202) 224-5623
IN Joe Donnelly D (202) 224-4814
KS Jerry Moran R (202) 224-6521
KS Pat Roberts R (202) 224-4774
KY Mitch McConnell R (202) 224-2541
KY Rand Paul R (202) 224-4343
LA Mary L. Landrieu D (202) 224-5824
LA David Vitter R (202) 224-4623
MA Edward Markey D (202) 224-2742
MA Elizabeth Warren D (202) 224-4543
MD Benjamin L. Cardin D (202) 224-4524
MD Barbara A. Mikulski D (202) 224-4654
ME Susan M. Collins R (202) 224-2523
ME Angus S. King I (202) 224-5344
MI Carl Levin D (202) 224-6221
MI Debbie Stabenow D (202) 224-4822
MN Al Franken D (202) 224-5641
MN Amy Klobuchar D (202) 224-3244
MO Roy Blunt R (202) 224-5721
MO Claire McCaskill D (202) 224-6154
MS Thad Cochran R (202) 224-5054
MS Roger F. Wicker R (202) 224-6253
MT Max Baucus D (202) 224-2651
MT Jon Tester D (202) 224-2644
NC Richard Burr R (202) 224-3154
NC Kay R. Hagan D (202) 224-6342
ND Heidi Heitkamp D (202) 224-2043
ND John Hoeven R (202) 224-2551
NE Deb Fischer R (202) 224-6551
NE Mike Johanns R (202) 224-4224
NH Kelly Ayotte R (202) 224-3324
NH Jeanne Shaheen D (202) 224-2841
NJ Jeff Chiesa R (202) 224-3224
NJ Robert Menendez D (202) 224-4744
NM Martin Heinrich D (202) 224-5521
NM Tom Udall D (202) 224-6621
NV Dean Heller R (202) 224-6244
NV Harry Reid D (202) 224-3542
NY Kirsten E. Gillibrand D (202) 224-4451
NY Charles E. Schumer D (202) 224-6542
OH Sherrod Brown D (202) 224-2315
OH Rob Portman R (202) 224-3353
OK Tom Coburn R (202) 224-5754
OK James M. Inhofe R (202) 224-4721
OR Jeff Merkley D (202) 224-3753
OR Ron Wyden D (202) 224-5244
PA Robert P. Casey D (202) 224-6324
PA Patrick J. Toomey R (202) 224-4254
RI Jack Reed D (202) 224-4642
RI Sheldon Whitehouse D (202) 224-2921
SC Lindsey Graham R (202) 224-5972
SC Tim Scott R (202) 224-6121
SD Tim Johnson D (202) 224-5842
SD John Thune R (202) 224-2321
TN Lamar Alexander R (202) 224-4944
TN Bob Corker R (202) 224-3344
TX John Cornyn R (202) 224-2934
UT Orrin G. Hatch R (202) 224-5251
UT Mike Lee R (202) 224-5444
VA Tim Kaine D (202) 224-4024
VA Mark R. Warner D (202) 224-2023
VT Patrick J. Leahy D (202) 224-4242
VT Bernard Sanders I (202) 224-5141
WA Maria Cantwell D (202) 224-3441
WA Patty Murray D (202) 224-2621
WI Tammy Baldwin D (202) 224-5653
WI Ron Johnson R (202) 224-5323
WV Joe Manchin D (202) 224-3954
WV John D. Rockefeller D (202) 224-6472
WY John Barrasso R (202) 224-6441
WY Michael B. Enzi R (202) 224-3424

- See more at: http://tedcruzforsenate.org/tell-your-senators-to-oppose-cloture-on-h-j-res-59/#sthash.CvqYzXvd.s4d7EOIg.dpuf

[stilloftyhenight]

Kill it. If they won’t do it, vote them out.

[MayflowerMadam]

“lower priced healthcare that offers more, and doesn’t require me to become a ward of the federal government, like Obamacare does.”

Very sad story on Fox last night (Megyn’s show, I think). A woman’s insurance (which she loved) was cancelled. She looked at her options on the Lucifercare website. Before she made a decision, she was told “Congratulations!” and discovered she was on Medicaid and there was no way to reverse it. She’s an independent person, with low income, and is humiliated to be on the dole now.

[ViLaLuz]

Is it still mandatory participation in the republican proposal?

[GSWarrior]

Your points are spot on. But both parties are going to have to be involved in any healthcare reform. One party acting without input from the other party is a recipe for disaster, IMO

[Monorprise]

“Haven’t we learned anything from obamacare? Keep Washington out of it.”

Unfortunately in Washington’s mind they have to pass a law to do that. They “are” after all the all mightily dictators of all laws both foreign and domestic much as their constitution is a ‘discarded relic’ of more lawful times.

[SunkenCiv]

Slate Discovers Scalise Did Not Attend White Supremacist Event