Republicans are giving an Obamacare repeal one last go, and the process is moving at a blinding pace.
The Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson (GCHJ) bill is the latest attempt to repeal President Barack Obama's signature healthcare law, officially known as the Affordable Care Act, and the GOP is wasting no time trying to pass it.
The proposal was released on Wednesday, and Republicans are moving as quickly as they can because their ability to use the process known as budget reconciliation expires at the end of the month. Reconciliation bypasses the filibuster, meaning that Republicans can pass it with a simple majority vote and no Democratic support.
Here's a rundown of the process as it goes from here:
- CBO score:
- announced on Monday
- point estimates of the effects on the deficit, health insurance coverage, or premiums."
- Senate parliamentarian ruling:
- Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing:
- particularly Sen. John McCain
- 90 seconds of debate:
- Vote
If the bill is passed, it would then need to be sent down to the House for another vote since it is different from the AHCA. The bill would likely need to be passed in the exact Senate version in order to avoid a conference committee that would be needed if the two bills are different.
A conference committee and re-vote by both the House and Senate probably aren't possible since Republicans only have until September 30 to pass the bill using reconciliation.
If the bill is fit in under the wire, it would be at most 17 days between the release of the bill and its passage.