Hard-Line Republican Caucus Backs Revised Bill to Repeal Obamacare -<br />By JENNIFER STEINHAUER and ROBERT PEARAPRIL 26, 2017<br />WASHINGTON — The House Freedom Caucus, a group of hard-line conservatives who were instrumental in blocking President Trump’s plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act last<br />month, gave its approval Wednesday to a new, more conservative version, breathing new life into Republican efforts to replace President Barack Obama’s health law.<br />The latest proposal, drafted by Representative Tom MacArthur, a moderate Republican of New Jersey, would allow states to obtain waivers from federal mandates<br />that insurers cover certain “essential health benefits,” like emergency services, maternity care, and mental health and substance abuse services, which many Republicans argue have driven up premiums.<br />“Members went home and got an earful,” said Representative Tom Cole, Republican of Oklahoma, saying<br />that voters were wondering, “Why can’t you get something done?” Mr. Cole said he was now “cautiously optimistic” that the measure could pass on the floor.<br />“Over the past couple of months, House conservatives have worked tirelessly to improve the American Health Care Act to make<br />it better for the American people,” Alyssa Farah, a spokeswoman for the House Freedom Caucus, said in a prepared statement.<br />Mr. Trump, seeking a major legislative victory in the first 100 days of his presidency, has been pressing hard to get a floor vote on a measure to repeal Mr. Obama’s signature health care law<br />and to fulfill a campaign promise of most Republicans for the better part of a decade.
