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“All the crocodile tears from Republicans on the campaign trail about helping people with pre-existing conditions are indeed a ‘crock’ — their leader just said so,” said Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care.

Washington, DC – Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell admitted that Republicans will try health care repeal again  if they win in November. In response, Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, released the following statement:

“Somebody slipped Mitch McConnell some truth serum this week because he just admitted Republicans are planning to repeal health care again if they win in November, gutting protections for people with pre-existing conditions. No matter how hard they try to cover it up, Republicans have spent eight years on this health care repeal crusade and keep re-affirming their plans to rip our health care away if voters send them back to Washington. This comes one day after McConnell revealed Republicans will continue to slash Medicare and Medicaid to fund the tax breaks they gave to the wealthy. No more proof is needed: All the crocodile tears from Republicans on the campaign trail about helping people with pre-existing conditions are indeed a ‘crock’ — their leader just said so.”

MITCH MCCONNELL IS ONLY THE LATEST REPUBLICAN LEADER TO ADMIT THAT REPUBLICANS WILL COME AFTER HEALTH CARE AFTER THE ELECTION. IN THEIR OWN WORDS:

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: “If We Had The Votes To Completely Start Over, We’d Do It.” “If we had the votes to completely start over, we’d do it. But that depends on what happens in a couple weeks… We’re not satisfied with the way Obamacare is working.” [Reuters, 10/17/18]

President Trump Reiterates That Republicans Will Go After Repeal Again If Elections Go Their Way. “You know, we want to repeal and replace it, and if we get enough Republicans, we will.” [Washington Post, 9/24/18]

Vice President Pence: ‘We Made An Effort To Fully Repeal And Replace Obamacare And We’ll Continue, With Leah Vukmir In The Senate.” “We made an effort to fully repeal and replace Obamacare and we’ll continue, with Leah Vukmir in the Senate, we’ll continue to go back to that.” [The Hill, 8/31/18]

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI): Maintaining Majority In Senate Means Republicans Will “Be Able To Pass Health Care Reform.” “I think the election will have to determine that because, based upon our vote count in the Senate. We keep the House majority in the house, which I think we will, and then you have to have enough of a majority in the Senate to be able to pass heath care reform.” [Roll Call, 9/12/18]

House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA): “If We Get More Senate Seats, Which I Think We Will, We’ve Got To Go Back To Health Care.” “‘We’ve got to hold the House, but if we get more Senate seats, which I think we will, we’ve got to go back to health care. Obamacare’s only getting worse. There is no private marketplace for families out there,’ House Majority Whip Steve Scalise.” [Fox Business, 9/12/18]

Senior Senate GOP Aide: Senate Would “Absolutely” Vote Again To Repeal ACA. “A senior Senate GOP aide said the chamber would ‘absolutely’ vote again to repeal ObamaCare but cautioned it would depend on ‘if we keep the House.’” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Sen. David Perdue (R-GA): On Repealing The ACA, “I’d Love To Have Somebody Take Care Of That.” “‘I’d love to have somebody to take care of that,’ Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) said of repealing ObamaCare.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Sen. John Thune (R-SD): It Would Be Nice To Have Members Who Will Help Us Repeal The ACA. “‘If we re-engage in that discussion in some point in the future, it would be nice to have members who enable us to pass it,’ Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Thune (S.D.) said when asked about the possibility of ObamaCare repeal legislation coming up for a future vote.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI): Hopes Next Senator From Arizona Is “Strong Ally” Who Recognizes “Obamacare Is Not A Proper Solution.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): If Republicans Expand Senate Majority, Another Repeal Vote Is Likely. “I suppose that it’s all in the numbers, and if you had a significant enough shift in the Senate and you came up with a replacement that really did generate a level of support, yep.” [Axios, 8/6/18]

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL): If Republicans Win In November, Republicans Could Repeal Health Care. “Republicans could repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act next year if the GOP holds onto its majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Saks, told a crowd in Anniston on Tuesday. ‘Assuming this fall turns out as some of us hope it does, and we pick up a majority in the House, we’re also going to pick up two or three seats in the Senate,’ Rogers said.” [The Anniston Star, 8/15/18]

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC): “With 53 Members We Can Get Health Care Done.” [Politico, 7/31/18]

“Repeal Is Like Fight Club, First Rule Is Not To Talk About It.” “Repeal is like fight club,” one GOP operative told Axios’ Caitlin Owens. “First rule is not to talk about it.” [Axios, 8/6/18]

BACKGROUND: IF REPUBLICANS RETAIN A MAJORITY IN CONGRESS NEXT YEAR, THEY WILL TRY TO REPEAL HEALTH CARE AGAIN

The Hill: GOP Lawmakers “Vow” To Try Again At Repeal Next Year If They Keep Majorities. “GOP lawmakers say they won’t have time to hold another vote to repeal the law in 2018 but vow to try again next year if they manage to keep their Senate and House majorities.” [The Hill, 8/29/18]

Axios: “Many Republicans Assume Their Party Will Take Another Stab At Repeal” If Midterms Go Their Way. “Many Republicans assume their party will take another stab at repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act if the midterm elections go their way, even though GOP candidates aren’t making a big deal about it on the campaign trail.” [Axios, 8/6/18]

New York Magazine: “It Is Hard To Think Of A Legislative Priority That Would Rank Higher In [Trump’s] Mind” Than Health Care Repeal. “If Republicans can add a couple more seats, they could give themselves enough margin to overcome the squishy reservations of Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski. If they merely hold their narrow majority, they might simply prevail on the two senators to submit. (Murkowski appeared to have been bought off by a special deal for her state last year.) Trump has never stopped talking about the failed repeal vote nor reliving his anger with McCain. It is hard to think of a legislative priority that would rank higher in his mind. A congressional party shorn of its most prominent Trump skeptics, many of whom are retiring, would behave even more submissively toward its leader.” [New York Magazine, 8/6/18]

Politico: With Larger Majority, No Longer Could Collins Or Murkowski Block Health Care Repeal. “With even a slightly larger GOP majority, no longer could Murkowski or her independent-minded brethren like Susan Collins of Maine or Rand Paul of Kentucky effectively dictate which nominees or majority-vote legislation make it through the chamber. Gone, too, would be the constant headaches for Republican leaders sweating an absence, wavering senator or Vice President Mike Pence’s availability to break a tie. Republicans might even have another shot at repealing Obamacare or shrinking the size of the federal government.” [Politico, 7/31/18]

Vox: If Republicans Win In November, “Repeal Could Quickly Be Back On The Agenda.” “It’s not at all out of the question that Republicans will hold on to the House and expand their Senate majority in the 2018 midterms. And if they do, repeal could quickly be back on the agenda. ‘There would certainly be forces pushing for this, so I take it seriously,’ Kim Monk, who tracks health care policy for Capital Alpha. Senate aides say privately that Republicans remain open to taking on repeal again next year.” [Vox, 5/14/18]

“The Republican Agenda is the Same as it Ever Was, and the American People are Sick and Tired of It,” says Brad Woodhouse

Washington, DC – In response to Senator Mitch McConnell joining the pack of Republicans pledging to further slash Medicaid and Medicare to pay for deficit busting tax cuts for big corporations and the super rich.  Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, issued the following statement in response:

“The Republican agenda is the same as it ever was: explode the deficit by trillions of dollars giving tax breaks to big corporations and the wealthy and then slash Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security which ordinary Americans rely on.  Mitch McConnell is a serial liar and only a fool would have believed him when he said that the tax scam they passed would pay for itself and only a fool would believe him or Republicans now when they say they care about getting the deficit they created under control. No, like always they have exploded the deficit by showering tax breaks on their friends and donors with the express purpose of turning around and slashing these programs which they have been out to dismantle for years. And we will all be damn fools if we let them get away with it.”

HERE ARE SOME OF THE OTHER REPUBLICANS PLEDGING TO SLASH HEALTH CARE TO PAY FOR THEIR TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY:

• Last month, Larry Kudlow, Director of the National Economic Council, confirmed that he has his sights on cutting Medicare. Asked when programs like Social Security and Medicare will be looked at for reforms, Kudlow replied, “Everyone will look at that — probably next year.”
  

• Paul Ryan on Medicare: “It’s the biggest entitlement we’ve got to reform.” Paul Ryan, December 6, 2017: “We’re going to have to get back next year at entitlement reform, which is how you tackle the debt and the deficit…Frankly, it’s the health care entitlements that are the big drivers of our debt, so we spend more time on the health care entitlements…In- think the president is understanding that choice and competition works everywhere in health care, especially in Medicare…This has been my big thing for many, many years. I think it’s the biggest entitlement we’ve got to reform.”

• President Trump and Congressional Republicans are targeting Medicare and Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest. Last December, President Trump signed a $1.5 trillion tax bill that disproportionately benefits the wealthy. How do Republicans plan on paying for it? Speaker Ryan’s answer is clear: “Frankly, it’s the health care entitlements that are the big drivers of our debt.” In an attempt to pay for these tax cuts, in April, House Republicans passed a budget amendment that would slash Medicare funding by $537 billion over the next decade.

• Congressional Republicans proposed these cuts after passing a budget resolution last year that cut Medicare by $473 billion. The 2018 budget resolution passed by Republicans in December 2017 cut Medicare by $473 billion.

• Congressional Republicans Voted to Slash An Additional $1.3 Trillion From Medicaid and other Health Care Programs. The 2018 budget resolution passed by Republicans in December 2017 cut non-Medicare health programs, most notably Medicaid, by $1.3 trillion, a 20 percent cut over the course of 10 years, increasing to a 29.3 percent cut by 2027.

“Putting Mary Mayhew in charge of Medicaid is like handing Society Security over to Bernie Madoff,” said Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care

Yesterday, the Trump Administration announced that Mary Mayhew, a devoted Medicaid opponent, would be the new head of Medicaid and CHIP programs. Said Brad Woodhouse, executive director of Protect Our Care, about the announcement: “Putting Mary Mayhew in charge of Medicaid is like handing Social Security over to Bernie Madoff. The American people want Republican war on health care to end, but this is just more of the same Trump administration sabotage.”

People have noticed that Trump wants an anti-Medicaid head of Medicaid:

Bangor Daily News: Mayhew Was “The Face Of LePage’s Crusade Against Medicaid Expansion.”  “No member of the LePage administration except for the governor himself has been a more polarizing figure than Mayhew, whose arch-conservative six-year tenure in the often-embattled health department became a road map for Republicans after the inauguration of Trump in 2017. She was the face of LePage’s crusade against Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, which was approved by voters in 2017 but has languished unimplemented in a court fight with a pending expansion plan and a request for new Medicaid work requirements sitting before the agency where Mayhew will be a key official.” [Bangor Daily News, 10/15/18]

FierceHealthcare:  Mayhew Is “An Ardent Opponent Of Medicaid Expansion.”  “A former Maine health official and an ardent opponent of Medicaid expansion has been appointed to oversee Medicaid at the federal level.” [FierceHealthcare, 10/15/18]

Fiscal Times:  “Trump’s New Medicaid Chief Is a Medicaid Critic.”  [Fiscal Times, 10/15/18]

Healthcare Finance:  Mayhew “Opposed The Expansion Of Medicaid In Maine.” “Mayhew is a conservative who, under Maine Governor Paul LePage,  oversaw major changes to Maine’s public assistance programs, including MaineCare, its Medicaid program, according to the Press Herald report.   She opposed the expansion of Medicaid in Maine. LePage has fought a court order to expand Medicaid, saying the state does not have the financial means to pay for it. Voters in 2017 approved a ballot measure to expand Medicaid in the state.” [Healthcare Finance, 10/15/18]

AP:  Mayhew Is A “Strong Opponent” Of Expanding Medicaid.  “Mayhew and LePage are both strong opponents of expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. When she announced her run for governor last year, Mayhew said: ‘I adamantly reject that growing government is the answer to our challenges.'” [Associated Press, 10/15/18]

Modern Healthcare:  Mayhew “Staunchly Opposed The State’s Ballot Measure To Expand Medicaid.”  “Mary Mayhew, who as Maine Gov. Paul LePage’s top health official staunchly opposed the state’s ballot measure to expand Medicaid, will lead Medicaid policy at the federal level in her new position as new deputy administrator and director of the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services.” [Modern Healthcare, 10/15/18]

Portland Press Herald:  Mayhew “Played A Major Role In Eliminating Nearly 70,000 People From The State’s Medicaid Program.”  “Mayhew is best known for her seven years as commissioner of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services under Gov. Paul LePage. During her tenure, she oversaw major changes to nearly all of Maine’s public assistance programs, including food stamps and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. Mayhew also played a major role in eliminating nearly 70,000 people from the state’s Medicaid program and, like LePage, she was an ardent opponent of expanding Medicaid, which was made allowable at the state level under the Affordable Care Act.”  [Portland Press Herald, 10/15/18]

Politico:  Mayhew Was The “Architect” Of Maine’s “Aggressive” Cuts to Medicaid Enrollment. “The Trump administration has tapped Mary Mayhew — the architect of Maine’s aggressive conservative reforms to the social safety net — to oversee the national Medicaid program. She has been an ally of outgoing Maine Gov. Paul LePage, a Republican who has fought as hard as any governor against expanding Medicaid under Obamacare. CMS announced the move internally Monday, the day Mayhew began as the agency’s deputy administrator and director of Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Mayhew served as Maine’s health commissioner for six years under LePage, leading efforts to tighten the state’s Medicaid eligibility standards, add work requirements to the food stamp program and implement other conservative reforms. She supported LePage as he rejected efforts to expand the state’s Medicaid program — repeatedly vetoing legislation and then resisting after nearly 60 percent of Maine voters approved expansion on a ballot measure in 2017. ” [Politico, 10/15/18]

Vox:  Mayhew Is A “Strident Medicaid Critic.”  “The Trump administration’s choice to run the Medicaid program nationwide is Mary Mayhew, a strident Medicaid critic who has urged states not to join the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion.” [Vox, 10/15/18]

Washington Examiner:  Mayhew “Shepherded Work Requirements For Food Stamps” In Maine. “Mary Mayhew, a Maine official who shepherded work requirements for food stamps in the state, has been appointed to a top role at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, where she will be responsible for overseeing health programs for low-income people. Mayhew is joining the agency as the Trump administration is working to expand work requirements in the Medicaid program. Under the proposals, approved in a handful of states, certain low-income people who are covered by Medicaid would need to work, take classes, or volunteer as a condition of staying enrolled in the program. Mayhew oversaw the rollout of food stamp work requirements in 2014, when she was commissioner for Health and Human Services under GOP Gov. Paul LePage. Mayhew co-authored an opinion piece on Fox News earlier this year with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich praising the Trump administration’s push to add work requirements to more welfare programs and close exemptions.” [Washington Examiner, 10/15/18]