Narrow win: House passage of health care bill still needs Senate approval

Republicans are celebrating the passage in the United States House of Representatives of a bill that would overhaul much of former President Barack Obama's health care law.

We hope they aren't celebrating too soon. The measure still has to be approved by the Senate and will likely undergo some changes before it is finished.

But still, Republicans have reason to be happy. Obamacare survived the GOP's first attempt at repeal and replacement, but stubborn conservative lawmakers continued to work behind the scenes to maintain the momentum needed to repeal portions of the law and were successful, leading to President Donald Trump's first big legislative victory. Apparently, Trump used his influence to convince borderline Republicans to back the measure.

It worked.

As we have said before, our biggest problem with Obamacare is the fact that it carries penalties for people who do not want to participate in the program. We think that is wrong, and we are glad that the Republican measure eliminates those penalties.

Now, on to the Senate.

Published in Editorials on May 5, 2017 9:27 AM