Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Nancy Pelosi, House minority leader: Trump ‘doesn’t know or doesn’t care’ what his health bill does
President Trump "either doesn't know or doesn't care" what his health care bill will do to his most ardent supporters, Nancy Pelosi said Sunday. Published March 19, 2017
Health Secretary Tom Price says he knows nothing about reported stock-trade probe
Health Secretary Tom Price said he doesn't know anything about a report that a federal prosecutor fired by President Trump had been looking into controversial stock trades he made while in Congress. Published March 19, 2017
House Speaker Paul Ryan: Health care bill is on track for passage this week
Paul D. Ryan said Sunday he feels "very good" about his Obamacare replacement's prospects for passage this week. Published March 19, 2017
Donald Trump says he’s changing minds on health care bill
President Trump said Friday that he's winning over Republican lawmakers who were opposed to the administration-backed health care bill to replace and repeal Obamacare, and he predicted the measure will now pass the House. Published March 17, 2017
Raul Labrador: GOP health care bill ‘has no natural constituency’
Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho said Thursday the House GOP health plan must be flawed, because people keep calling his office and attacking it. Published March 16, 2017
House budget panel narrowly advances GOP Obamacare replacement
Republicans cleared a path Thursday for their Obamacare replacement to reach the House floor, narrowly approving a package in the Budget Committee that can overcome Democratic opposition later on, though the vote exposed a GOP rift that could sink the effort from within President Trump's own party. Published March 16, 2017
Paul Ryan open to ‘fine-tuning’ of Republican health plan
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan signaled Wednesday that he is open to "fine-tuning" the Republican health care bill as he and President Trump try to win back conservatives — and risk alienating even more moderates in the Senate who say the legislation is already kicking people out of coverage. Published March 15, 2017
Conservatives ‘optimistic’ it can move health plan to the right
House conservatives emerged Wednesday from a Capitol Hill meeting with Vice President Mike Pence saying they are "optimistic" they can bend the Obamacare replacement to their liking before a final vote. Published March 15, 2017
HHS: 2017 Obamacare signups fall short of enrollment targets, last year’s effort
Obamacare suffered its first year-over-year drop in signups and fell short of enrollment targets in 2017, the Trump administration said Wednesday, as it races to repeal and replace the law with a House GOP plan. Published March 15, 2017
Republican health care plan breaks all of Donald Trump’s campaign vows
President Trump vowed to have health care coverage for everybody, to cut costs and to leave Medicaid alone during his historic romp to the White House, but the Republican health care plan he has endorsed would flout each of those promises. Published March 14, 2017
Chuck Schumer: GOP is attacking ‘the referee’ as they lose the health reform game
Leading Democrats on Tuesday accused Republicans of attacking congressional bean-counters simply because their health care plan fell short of their own promises to the American people. Published March 14, 2017
CBO: Republican health plan will lead to 24M fewer insured by 2026, save more than $300B
Republicans' plan to repeal and replace Obamacare would cut spending by more than $300 billion over the next decade but would result in 24 million fewer people holding health insurance, Congress' official scorekeeper said Monday, creating another political hurdle for President Trump and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill. Published March 13, 2017
Health care plan by Republicans gets resistance from hospitals, activist groups
The House GOP plan to replace Obamacare survived its first week on Capitol Hill, but everyone from the AARP to the American Lung Association is lining up against the plan, suggesting the tough road Republicans have ahead of them. Published March 12, 2017
House GOP leaders pitch Obamacare replacement plan to holdouts as a ‘first step’
House Republican leaders sold their Obamacare replacement plan Friday as a "thoughtful foundation" for future reforms that will drive down health costs, heaping pressure on GOP holdouts who say the plan doesn't go far enough. Published March 10, 2017
GOP Obamacare plan clears first hurdles
Republicans powered their Obamacare repeal-and-replace plan through two committees Thursday, maintaining unity -- at least for now -- as President Trump rebuked naysayers and said the ugly health care debate will end with a "beautiful picture." Published March 9, 2017
Conservatives support Medicaid changes to Obamacare plan
An influential bloc of House conservatives backed two proposed changes to the Obamacare replacement plan Thursday, saying it could soften their general opposition to the broader GOP proposal. Published March 9, 2017
Rand Paul deflects Trump tweets, revives 2015 Obamacare effort
President Trump's attempt to cyber-cajole Sen. Rand Paul into supporting the House GOP's health plan appears to have only emboldened the Kentucky Republican, who on Thursday said he reintroduced his "clean repeal" of Obamacare. Published March 9, 2017
GOP leaders urge troops to heed Trump, back Obamacare replacement
Democrats mounted ferocious resistance Wednesday to the Republican health care plan, erecting roadblocks in committees and attempting to shut down the House floor, saying the party's lawmakers are plowing ahead without knowing what the Obamacare replacement will cost or how many people will lose insurance coverage. Published March 8, 2017
Health care replacement by Republicans criticized by conservatives and moderates
It took seven years to write, but House Republicans' Obamacare replacement plan began to unwind Tuesday after less than a day in the public eye. Published March 7, 2017
Conservatives demand seat at health reform table
Saying Obamacare repeal is what unites Republicans, a faction of House and Senate conservatives urged GOP leaders Tuesday to kill off the 2010 law and debate the next steps separately, rather than rushing ahead with a replacement bill that falls short in their eyes. Published March 7, 2017
