Rand Paul would prefer a Senate health bill that repeals Obamacare

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The House version of the legislation, the American Health Care Act, has the lowest support in polls of any major piece of legislation dating back to 1990.

In a statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics said, "The bill fails children by dismantling the Medicaid program, capping its funding, ending its expansion and allowing its benefits to be scaled back".

Assuming every Democrat is a no vote, the GOP can't afford more than 2 of their own senators to vote against the bill. Three other GOP senators did the same.

In addition to eliminating additional spending for expansion states, the Senate bill would also end the program as an open-ended entitlement program.

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst is suggesting Iowans would not be losing Medicaid coverage even as the Senate GOP health care bill would phase out financing to expand the low-income insurance program.

With a third of the Senate coming up for re-election in 2018, many will have to weigh the state-wide implications before voting for the bill.

Mr McConnell said a fresh CBO score was expected next week, and there will be "robust debate" on the floor.

Heller expressed particular concerns about the bill's impact on Medicaid, and especially on states, such as Nevada, that expanded Medicaid under Obamacare.

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"It's going to be a good bill", Trump said in a separate Fox News interview to air on Sunday.

"Leadership knows how I feel and what I need", Heller said, but another question is whether leadership will need him. "We're trying to capture all people who believe in the Trump agenda". Obviously that means his vote could change once the bill gets amended, but it might be slightly tricky considering his reason for opposing AHCA: Medicaid.

"It's going to be very hard to get me to a yes", Heller continued. The bill would slash Medicaid and rescind the Obamacare requirement that most Americans have health insurance.

The bill in its current form may not just alienate conservative voters who think it doesn't go far enough but also may not assuage moderates enough to get their votes, either.

"The current bill does not repeal Obamacare", Rand Paul, one of the four Senators, along with Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Ted Cruz of Texas, and Mike Lee of Utah, who have said in a joint statement that they're "not ready to vote for this bill".

"Now it's failed - it's virtually out of business - Obamacare is a disaster, and we're trying to do something in a very short period of time", Trump said.

The Senate bill maintains much of the structure of the House's but differs in key ways. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is seeking a vote on the bill before Congress leaves next week for its Fourth of July recess.

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