Jeffries Says Bipartisan Majority Will Back Three-Year Extension Of Obamacare Subsidies

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told ABC’s This Week that he is confident Congress will approve a clean, three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits despite ongoing Republican opposition.

Jeffries dismissed Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s prediction that a straight extension would be "dead on arrival" in the Senate, saying Thune "is not serious about protecting the health care of the American people." He added that a bipartisan vote in favor of the extension would put pressure on Senate Republicans to act.

“It will pass, with a bipartisan majority, and then that will put the pressure on John Thune and Senate Republicans to actually do the right thing by the American people: pass a straightforward extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits so we can keep health care affordable for tens of millions of Americans who deserve to be able to go see a doctor when they need one.” — Hakeem Jeffries

The House is scheduled to vote in January after Democrats used a discharge petition that reached the required signatures to force a vote over the objections of Speaker Mike Johnson. Last week, the House passed a separate Republican health plan along party lines that does not extend the tax credits, effectively setting up a potential lapse in subsidies at year-end.

Problem Solvers Caucus: A Short-Term Fix

Members of the Problem Solvers Caucus, Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), said the Democratic measure is intended as a short-term solution to prevent an immediate lapse in coverage. Fitzpatrick was one of four House Republicans who signed the discharge petition to advance the clean-extension bill.

Suozzi praised bipartisanship as a way to "get a vehicle to the Senate so that we can work together to actually address it," but he and others warned the bill still faces steep opposition from Senate Republicans.

Opposition From Sen. Rand Paul

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul reiterated his opposition to extending the subsidies, promoting instead an expansion of Association Health Plans, which he says allow buyers to negotiate for lower premiums. Paul also opposed a separate GOP proposal this month to create government-funded health savings accounts.

“We have health care in our country for poor people. It's called Medicaid. All of the rest of the stuff has not worked,” Paul told ABC. “Obamacare has been a failure. President Obama said it would bring premiums down; premiums have gone through the roof. Every time we give more subsidies, the premiums go higher.”

Political Stakes

Jeffries declined to embrace a single overhaul of the health-care system, saying only that "there are a variety of different things that need to be done." He criticized President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers for failing to deliver on promises to lower costs and pointed to recent Republican-led Medicaid cuts.

“As Democrats, we're promising to focus relentlessly on driving down the high cost of living, to make life more affordable for everyday Americans, and to fix our broken health care system, which Republicans have been damaging in an extraordinary way throughout the year, including by enacting the largest cut to Medicaid in American history.” — Hakeem Jeffries

With the House set to vote in January, the outcome will likely depend on whether a sufficient number of Senate Republicans join Democrats and moderates to approve a clean extension, or whether further negotiations produce an alternative compromise before the year-end deadline.