All of California’s GOP House members voted to pass the Obamacare repeal bill
Video shows how California’s Republicans votes on Obamacare repeal
After intense days of pressure from constituents and House leaders, all 14 California House Republicans joined their colleagues Thursday to vote for a GOP rollback of the Affordable Care Act. Here are all of their votes:
Representative | Stance |
---|---|
Rep. Ken Calvert (Corona) | Yes |
Rep. Paul Cook (Yucca Valley) | Yes |
Rep. Jeff Denham* (Turlock) | Yes |
Rep. Duncan Hunter (Alpine) | Yes |
Rep. Darrell Issa* (Vista) | Yes |
Rep. Steve Knight* (Palmdale) | Yes |
Rep. Doug LaMalfa (Richvale) | Yes |
Rep. Kevin McCarthy (Bakersfield) | Yes |
Rep. Tom McClintock (Elk Grove) | Yes |
Rep. Devin Nunes (Tulare) | Yes |
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher* (Costa Mesa) | Yes |
Rep. Ed Royce* (Fullerton) | Yes |
Rep. David Valadao* (Hanford) | Yes |
Rep. Mimi Walters* (Irvine) | Yes |
The American Health Care Act, which government estimates have said could lead to 24 million fewer Americans with health insurance and could substantially affect both those on Medicaid and those with employer-provided insurance, passed the House 217 to 213. It will now move on to the Senate, where it is expected to face multiple stumbling blocks.
More than half of the Golden State’s Republicans were among the members who were leery of the bill when it was changed to accommodate the far-right Freedom Caucus, including allowing states to scrap protections for people with preexisting conditions. But an amendment that added $8 billion to offset insurance costs for some people with preexisting conditions appears to have swayed some of the holdouts, including Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock), who earlier this week said he would vote against the bill.
House Republican leaders, including House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield), insist the bill will still cover people with preexisting conditions such as asthma, pregnancy or cancer. Conditions such as those were used by insurance companies to deny coverage prior to Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act. But most healthcare experts and patient advocates dispute that. The House did not wait for an official report from the Congressional Budget Office on how much the bill would cost or how it would affect Americans.
New tax credits created under the bill could not be spent on any policy that covers abortions, which will significantly affect any Californian who receives federal assistance to pay for insurance. Under California law, all insurance policies offered in the state must include abortion coverage.
A side-by-side comparison of Obamacare and the GOP’s replacement plan »
As expected, all 39 California House Democrats voted against the bill.
Seven of the 14 Republicans in California’s delegation represent districts that picked
Democrats are expected to lambaste their Republican colleagues in the 2018 midterm election for supporting the bill, just as Republicans did to win a wave of seats after the Affordable Care Act passed.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) opened with a warning during a Thursday morning news conference. "Most people don't even know who their congressperson is in many places. And now they'll find out. They will find out that their congressperson voted to take away their healthcare," she told reporters before the vote.
*House Republicans from California districts that picked Hillary Clinton for president and will be targeted by Democrats in 2018.
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UPDATES:
3:30 p.m.: Updated to indicate the seven California Republicans that Democrats will focus on beating.
12:20 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details about Thursday’s vote.
This article was originally published at 11:25 a.m.
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