Q: Is the bill that passed the House today intended to repeal the Affordable Care Act?
Not entirely. In the seven years since a Democratic Congress and the Obama administration pushed through the ACA, the House has taken more than 60 votes to repeal all or part of it. But today’s vote was a first-stage effort, with the bill intended — at least originally — to address only those parts of the sprawling law with budgetary implications. It is designed that way so the Senate will have an easier time passing the legislation under a “reconciliation” process that allows bills with budgetary impact to be approved by a simple majority, rather than a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.
