GOP sets stage for health reform law repeal vote; Dems fight back, citing CBO report

News outlets report that as House Republicans moved ahead to bring the repeal of the health law to a floor vote next week, political messaging wars about the law are continuing.

Roll Call: "In the Republicans' first weekly address to the nation since taking control of the House, Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) emphasized their intention to repeal and replace President Barack Obama's signature health care overhaul. ... Repealing and replacing the health care law are significant elements of the GOP's plan for cutting spending and creating jobs. The overhaul is 'destroying jobs and piling up more debt' while engaging in budget 'gimmicks,' Cantor said in Saturday's address" (Starkey, 1/8).

The Hill: "House Republicans have said they will vote on a bill repealing healthcare reform on Jan. 12. However, Democrats are arguing that doing so would cause Republicans to violate their campaign promise of cutting spending, since the Congressional Budget Office determined that repealing the law would add $230 billion to the deficit over the next 10 years. Cantor rebutted such claims by contending that Democrats that drafted the healthcare law used budgetary tricks to throw off an accurate scoring of the law's true impact on the deficit" (Schroeder, 1/8).

Reuters: "President Barack Obama urged newly empowered Republicans on Saturday not to wage 'symbolic battles' against him but to instead work together to help spur job growth and economic recovery. Obama issued his appeal in his weekly radio address ... 'What we can't do is refight the battles of the past two years that distract us from the hard work of moving our economy forward,' he said. ... Resurgent Republicans have vowed to undo Obama's healthcare reform plan, but the effort took a hit on Thursday when congressional budget analysts said repeal would add billions of dollars to the federal budget deficit" (Spetalnick, 1/8). 

Los Angeles Times: "The House of Representatives on Friday voted to bring the repeal of the health care overhaul to the floor for formal debate even as the latest poll showed that Americans only slightly supported overturning one of the signature efforts of President Barack Obama's administration. In what was essentially a party-line vote, the House approved the rule required to bring the repeal measure to the floor for final consideration next week. The vote was 236-181" (Muskal, 1/8).

The Washington Post: "Republicans acknowledge that overturning the landmark law is an uphill effort because Senate Democrats - who still hold the majority in that chamber - have no intention of bringing up the repeal measure. But they suggested that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) would at least force a vote on the issue by offering the legislation as an amendment to another bill later this spring. 'They're going to figure out a way to have that vote,' Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said in an interview. Upton and other chairmen have been instructed to begin work on their own bills to undo individual portions of the roughly 2,000-page law" (Kane and Sonmez, 1/8).

The Associated Press: "The real action is in states, where Republicans are using federal courts and governors' offices to lead the assault against Obama's signature domestic achievement, a law aimed at covering nearly all Americans. Shortly before the House vote, Republican governors representing 30 states opened up a new line of attack, potentially more successful. In a letter to Obama and congressional leaders, the governors complained that provisions of the health care law are restricting their ability to control Medicaid spending, raising the threat of devastating cuts to other critical programs, from education to law enforcement in a weak economy" (Alonso-Zaldivar, 1/8).

Politico: "Messaging offensives by the White House and House Republican leaders ramped up yesterday, with both sides trying to gain the upper hand in the battle of words over the defense, or demise, of the health reform law. The White House released talking points and a 'fact sheet' about the law, leading with how it creates jobs ... The White House stays on message about the law saving money, citing the Congressional Budget Office official estimate that the reform law reduces the federal deficit by $124 billion over 10 years. ... An aide to House Speaker John Boehner scoffed at the idea of responding, point by point, to the talking points outlined in the documents, and suggested that a 19-page report released by his office Thursday speaks for itself. The report says the law is having a 'devastating impact' on both 'jobs and the economy'" (Coughlin, 1/7).

The New York Times: "The disparities, while big, are not as hard to understand as they might seem. There are uncertainties around all of the projections and predictions. ... The Democrats designed the health care law so that most of the cuts and new taxes begin early while most of the spending, on insurance subsidies, for instance, begins in 2014. The new taxes include an increase in the individual hospital insurance payroll tax on income above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples ... The costs include a broad expansion in eligibility for Medicaid, the state-federal insurance program for low-income Americans, and new subsidies to help low- and middle-income Americans buy private health insurance" (Herszenhorn, 1/7)

Related KHN news summary: House Approves Rule For Repeal Vote; Clears The Way For Wednesday Action (1/7)

Related KHN story: Key GOP Adviser Regrets Lack Of Bipartisan Health Accord (Vaida, 1/7)