Congressional inaction on the expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies that millions rely on is "idiotic," Rep. Mike Lawler told NPR's "Morning Edition" on Wednesday.
The New York Republican said that while the ACA subsidies were meant to be temporary, he finds it "unacceptable" for Congress to allow them to expire knowing that healthcare premiums will go up sharply.
NPR noted more than 20 million people rely on these subsidies.
A vote is scheduled for Wednesday on a proposal from Speaker Mike Johnson that focuses on cutting health costs and adding some reforms favored by conservatives, NPR reported. But Johnson's plan currently does not extend the ACA subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year.
Lawler acknowledged that "Obamacare has failed. It has not done what it was intended to do, which is to reduce costs. ... Speaker Johnson is correct that the system is not working, and just throwing money at the insurance companies is not going to make it more affordable."
But Lawler emphasized that "you have to have a plan in place. You have to have reforms in place. And to just end the subsidy without those changes to me is idiotic."
He explained that "is why I and many of my colleagues ... have been pushing for a vote ... We are exploring what options remain."
Lawler reiterated that "doing nothing is not an answer ... None of us are going to get everything we want. There needs to be bipartisan compromise. That's what I've been working on [in a bipartisan fashion] since the government shutdown ended to get a deal done. We have the framework for a deal. We just need enough Democrats to move it."
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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