Given that the BCRA is now dead, I’ve begun this new post. We are now in uncharted territory. No hearings have been held, there is no passable bill to even vote on, and Republican Senate leadership has a death grip on the wheel, eager to pass anything at all—and that anything has no glimmer of hope of improving health care for the country. In fact, it’s just the opposite.

25 July update from the Alaska Dispatch News. Motion to proceed passed 51-50. Pence had to make the tie-breaking vote, with Collins & Murkowski voting against it with all 48 Democrats. There is absolutely nothing on the table that isn’t detrimental to Alaskans, so good on Murkowski. The BCRA itself then died a swift death 43:57, with nine Republicans joining all Democrats in opposing it. Those nine, per Matt Fuller on Twitter (@MEPFuller), were: “Nine Republicans voting no at this point on BCRA: Collins, Cotton, Corker, Graham, Heller, Lee, Moran, Murkowski, and Paul.” The process going forward now is nothing less than a total mess, with no clear bill to vote on and no outcome on the table that doesn’t take away health care from many millions and cause dramatic insurance cost increases among large swaths of society.

Fivethirtyeight is carrying ongoing coverage. NY Times is also keeping up, of course.

Everyone should be calling their Senators, daily. The best path forward for, you know, actually improving health, is a bipartisan approach to fixing the ACA. From my prior most:

The way to move forward is simple and most agree on it: “Nearly everyone wants changes to the Obama law, while hardly anyone wants to see it abolished without a substitute in place.” Eleven governors (bipartisan) sent a letter to Congress to advocate for this approach.

Pick up the phone. I’m sure your Senators will enjoy hearing from you.

P.S. The disappointment of the day was probably John McCain. What an American. And what a way to go out not with a bang but with a whimper. His kowtowing to the party began probably in 2000, as I recall. But I have to say that coming back from life-threatening, publicly funded brain surgery to then vote for the BCRA to take such hope from tens of millions of fellow Americans is contemptibly low. That’s party before country stuff. I wish him a strong recovery (he’s served his country much more than most), but I wish we could turn the clock back to when he was clearly for all Americans.

26 July update. TPM provides a timeline for today.

If I had more time, this would be a long post. But I can only spank boiled ire down on the page for a short time today. A bill developed in secret with “screw you” core elements is not dead yet. It needs to be. Wrongly labeled “better care,” the only healthy improvement it contains is wealthy peoples’ income from tax breaks. The rest of us will suffer. This bill will take health care away from tens of millions, give generous tax breaks to the wealthy, cause major economic hits to great swaths of society, and is opposed by most Americans. It is also opposed by the health care community (from big insurers to hospitals and medical associations), by the AARP, and a long list of other groups. It has an approval rating among the public of just 17%. It’s the least popular legislation in 30 years (and has gotten less popular since this article appeared).

It is amazing that such a terrible piece of legislation is alive at all. Republicans developed it in secret and are trying to ram it down our throats. Conveniently, we are distracted by the Trump circus. Call your senators and encourage them to vote against it (or thank them if they are already committed to doing so).

Don’t be confused by the uncertainty regarding details of this legislation—there is nothing good on the table, just different flavors of really bad. This is purely a party-before-country ideological march over a cliff, for which tens of millions of Americans will suffer immediately (health-wise and economically) and more over the longer term. Here are some of the general outcomes.

Here are details on the bill’s effects. And here is Alaska as an example.

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Health care was on my Watch List of things likely to get worse with a Trump administration. Yes, he promised the exact opposite, and his supporters may have believed that, but it was a con. Hang on—you’re about to get really screwed. And so are a lot of others. It’s not too late: call your representative in the House and urge that person not to vote to approve it (they are pushing for a vote on Thursday).

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Heard about the incoming president who chooses the fox to guard the henhouse? Who’s filling the swamp with creatures from the Black Lagoon? Yeah. Me, too. I hate it when real life becomes a bad movie.

We’re in a very busy time in Washington, D.C., with a lot of cabinet appointees up for hearings now and in the coming weeks. Your voice is being heard in Washington! So keep on calling on the issues that concern you. We’ve seen the House pull back on eliminating the Office of Congressional Ethics, we’ve seen the hearings delayed for four incompletely vetted nominees, and Senator Murkowski has joined with several other Republicans to request a delay of the ACA repeal. There will be more. Keep watch, and call your representatives on things that you think they should oppose (or support). Here is a good guide to effectively doing this (I also follow Emily Ellsworth on Twitter). Derek Nelson at re:act is also good. re:act puts out a weekly list that is proving helpful. Here is the current one.

I am calling and hope you will, too. I’ve had some good conversations with congressional staffers.

Contact information for your senators is here. The phone calls are quick and easy when you have a few talking points (you can email, too, but it may not be as effective). I can’t keep up with the list of nominees, but I can point you some places to where to learn more.
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This week is a big one in Washington, D.C. The Republican majority is going to try to ram through a bunch of things quickly in hopes that we don’t have time to assess and react. Keep watch, and call your representatives on things that you think they should oppose (or support). Here is a good guide to effectively doing this (I also follow Emily Ellsworth on Twitter): I am calling and hope you will, too. I’ve had some good conversations with congressional staffers. Contact information for your House representative is here and for your senators is here. The phone calls are quick and easy when you have a few talking points (you can email, too, but it may not be as effective). Here are some thoughts about the Affordable Care Act:
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