The Newest Republican Health Care Bill, And What It Means For You

A new version of the Senate health care plan came out on Thursday. It is the latest effort by Republicans to deliver on their promise to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare.

This new version of the Senate bill is aimed at winning the votes of both the most moderate and most conservative members of the Republican Party.

On Thursday morning, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, of Texas, talked about the plan on radio station KFYI in Arizona, and said: "I think we're making serious progress toward coming together and unifying our conference, and getting a bill that can command the support of at least 50 senators and pass into law."

But there is still skepticism among some Republicans. Sen. Rand Paul, of Kentucky, spoke at a press conference on Wednesday and said the new bill does not go far enough in repealing Obamacare. "They've now taken the bill and made it worse," he added. "They've taken any pretense that this is a repeal bill, and they've made it a bill that basically is a spending bill."

On the more moderate GOP side, Republican Sen. Susan Collins, from Maine, tweeted Thursday she will vote no.

And on the other side of the aisle, Democrats are still voicing strong opposition to this bill. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke on Thursday at a press conference.

"This bill, like the old one, means millions of Americans will lose coverage," he said. "The bill was mean when it passed the House, it's mean when it was introduced in the Senate, and it's still mean today."

With so much opposition from Democrats and even some Republicans, it's unclear this bill will pass the Senate.

In an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network Wednesday, President Trump was asked what would happen if the Senate does not succeed at passing this health care plan.

"Well, I don't even want to talk about it," Trump said. "I think it would be very bad. I will be very angry about it, and a lot of people will be very upset. But I'm sitting, waiting for that bill to come to my desk. I hope that they do it, they've been promising it for years."

Don Berwick, former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under President Obama. Senior fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. He tweets @donberwick.