The White House Is Still Fighting for the Repeal of Obamacare

Friday afternoon, Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of Health & Human Services Dr. Tom Price held a roundtable discussion about the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, at the White House.

On hand were leaders from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Federation of Independent Business, Concerned Women for America, the National Taxpayers Union, the American Conservative Union and Club for Growth, among others. The vice president said the goal of the meeting was to make the case to the American people Obamacare can by repealed and replaced with policies “built on freedom, that are built on state-based reform, and that will give the American people access to the world-class healthcare that they need and deserve.”

“As we gather today, we are just a few days away from a critical vote in the Congress, a vote to begin the debate on the repeal and replace of Obamacare, and President Trump and I are urging every member of the United States Senate to vote to begin this debate,” he said. “Every one of the groups that are gathered here today—the millions that you represent—are here to speak with one voice to say to the Congress: It’s time to vote. It’s time to act. It’s time to get on with a debate to repeal and replace Obamacare.”

Price said time is of the essence, because the American people “deserve and demand that Washington addresses their problems and their challenges.” He said Americans want healthcare back in their own hands, not in those of Washington, D.C., bureaucrats.

“There are decisions that will be made over the next few weeks in states all across this land about what 2018 looks like from an insurance standpoint, and the decision that is made in the next few days in this town will dictate and determine what those decisions will be,” he added. “So as people are wont to say, this problem demands an act of Congress, and so it’s an act of Congress that must happen. And we, once again, just can’t thank you all enough for being that positive and productive influence on this discussion and this debate.”

You can watch their full statements are the opening of the roundtable in the video clip above. {eoa}