McCain May Have Just Saved ObamaCare. Again

Senator says he can't vote for the newest GOP repeal bill
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 22, 2017 1:18 PM CDT
McCain Says He Can't Vote for ObamaCare Repeal
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks with reporters before heading into a policy luncheon on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017, in Washington.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The latest Republican effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act may very well be dead after Sen. John McCain announced his opposition to it Friday, the AP reports. "I cannot in good conscience vote for the Graham-Cassidy proposal," CNN quotes McCain as saying in a statement. "I believe we could do better working together, Republicans and Democrats, and have not yet really tried." This would be the second time McCain has put a nail in the coffin of Republican efforts to end ObamaCare.

McCain said he couldn't vote for the Graham-Cassidy bill without a CBO score, which wouldn't be available until later this month, to let him know "how much it will cost, how it will affect insurance premiums, and how many people will be helped or hurt by it." Republicans could only afford to have two senators side with Democrats in opposition to the bill. Sen. Rand Paul was already opposed and Sen. Susan Collins was leaning that way. A recent poll found only 24% of Americans support the Graham-Cassidy bill and 50% disapprove of it, the Hill reports. (More John McCain stories.)

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