This post was updated at 1:38 p.m. on Thursday.
The House of Representatives voted Thursday to approve the American Health Care Act, touted by the GOP and President Donald Trump as a better alternative to President Obama's signature health care effort, the Affordable Care Act. The final vote, 217 - 213. All 193 Democrats in the House, joined by 20 Republicans, opposed the bill.
The bill was previously withdrawn from a vote in March after the GOP failed to garner enough support from both conservative and moderate Republicans.
KCUR reached out to House members from both Kansas and Missouri to get an idea of how the vote might shake out.
Kansas
Rep. Kevin Yoder: Yes
Kansas Congressman Kevin Yoder’s vote Thursday in the U.S. House could be a critical factor in whether a revised GOP-backed health care plan passes.
The Johnson County moderate has remained publicly undecided about this latest attempt to repeal and replace large chunks of the Affordable Care Act, although he did have this to say last month on KCUR’s Up To Date about a previous version of the bill:
"So I lay down a marker, you've got to have pre-existing conditions covered in this bill to get my support," Yoder told Up To Date host Steve Kraske. "Well, the Tea Party wing of the party said, 'Well, we're not going to vote for it.' So we're kind of caught in that scenario."
Yoder said he would not have voted for that previous version.
A recent poll shows a majority of voters in Yoder’s Third Congressional District approve of the Affordable Care Act.
Rep. Roger Marshall: Yes
Rep. Lynn Jenkins: Yes
Rep. Ron Estes: Yes
Missouri
Rep. Billy Long: Yes
U.S. Representative Billy Long on Wednesday signaled he would vote yes on the GOP’s revised healthcare plan, a day after he told St. Louis Public Radio there was no way he could support the plan.
“So I’m not quite sure why they think my vote’s so important but they’re sure doing a lot of arm twisting but it’s not going to do them any good," said Long.
Long, a reliable conservative from Southwest Missouri, said he opposed an amendment in the bill that would let states allow insurance companies to charge higher premiums to people with preexisting conditions.
On Wednesday morning, after meeting with the president, he told reporters he was now a “yes” on the plan. Long’s office said the promise of a new amendment, which would add funding to the bill’s high risk pools for people with preexisting conditions, is what ultimately changed his mind.
Rep. Ann Wagner: Yes
Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer: Yes
Rep. Vicky Hartzler: Yes
Rep. Sam Graves: Yes
Rep. Jason Smith: Yes
Rep. William Lacy Clay: No
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II: No
Lisa Rodriguez is a reporter and the afternoon newscaster for KCUR 89.3. Connect with her on Twitter @larodrig.
Kyle Palmer is KCUR's morning newscaster. You can follow him on Twitter @kcurkyle.
Laura Spencer is an arts reporter at KCUR 89.3. You can reach her on Twitter at @lauraspencer.
