Rep. Tom MacArthur is under fire from GOP centrists and some of his moderate Tuesday Group colleagues for his part in resuscitating the Obamacare repeal effort, Politico reports.
"You are going to make us lose the majority," one moderate said, according to MacArthur.
MacArthur and House Freedom Caucus leader Mark Meadows brokered an amendment to the lackluster GOP healthcare bill which would allow states to seek waivers to eliminate the so-called community rating provision that prohibits insurers from charging higher premiums to people with pre-existing conditions if they participate in a federal high-risk pool intended to help cover sick patients whose premiums might surge.
"My amendment has caused far more of a stir than I anticipated," MacArthur, a Republican and co-chair of the Tuesday Group, told Politico. "And I made the judgment that I think for me, particularly with the moderates, it’s better if I stay out of the way at the moment."
The Tuesday Group is a group of right-center Republicans who aim to support moderate and center-right legislative positions.
MacArthur negotiated the deal with Meadows on his own, and Tuesday Group meetings have been heated since then according to Politico.