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The House of Representatives delayed its vote on repealing and replacing parts of the Affordable Care Act after Republican leaders failed to rally enough support to pass the bill, per a CNBC report.
Per CNBC:
The GOP House caucus will meet at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday to discuss its path forward, NBC News reported. A vote on the legislation is still possible on Friday, NBC said.
The postponement of the vote is a major setback to the GOP House leadership and President Donald Trump who have been pushing the American Health Care Act as the only viable option at this time to move the replacement of Obamacare forward. Especially given that the delay did not mimic the sentiment out of the White House Press Briefing hours earlier when Press Secretary Sean Spicer was adamant about the passage of the bill.
The delay is also on the heels of many last ditch efforts by Speaker Paul Ryan and the White House to curtail the House Freedom Caucus’ division on AHCA.
CNBC reported:
President Donald Trump met with the House Freedom Caucus for two straight days, aiming to convince the conservative group to vote to pass the plan Thursday amid concerns that it did not go far enough to repeal Obamacare.
The White House gave the House Freedom Caucus a final offer Thursday in its effort to win enough votes for the legislation. As of Thursday afternoon, Freedom Caucus chairman Rep. Mark Meadows told reporters “there are not enough votes” to push the legislation through.
Speaker Ryan is set to address the media regarding the postponement of AHCA any moment.
