U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said on Thursday that Congress must act to shore up private health insurance markets if it fails to repeal Obamacare, comments seen as providing a pathway to a bipartisan deal to fix the health system.
Many of the individual health insurance markets established under Obamacare have struggled, hurt by an unfavorable balance of sick and healthy customers, and some insurers have pulled out because of uncertainty on whether the government will continue to fund cost-sharing subsidies to help individuals pay premiums.
Republicans have been fighting to repeal Obama's signature piece of domestic legislation since it was first approved. President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress made repeal a central campaign promise last year.
But efforts to replace the healthcare law this year have run into difficulties. The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed a replacement bill in May.
At least one Republican senator publicly opposed the bill and others were critical of it. McConnell can only afford to lose two Republicans from his 52-seat majority in the 100-seat Senate and still pass the measure.
Reference: Reuters
Read More: http://www.reuters.com/
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