The White House has doubled down on its promise that President Barack Obama will veto any attempts by the Republican-led Congress to repeal Obamacare.
The Obama administration
released a statement of administration policy in the wake of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's Obamacare Repeal Act that was introduced Monday. The House is set to vote on its own bill to repeal the president's signature healthcare law on Tuesday, which the statement specifically addresses.
"More than 250 million Americans with insurance — private insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid — would lose the benefits and protections they receive under the healthcare law," the White House said in its statement Monday about the House bill.
"Women could be charged more than men and up to 129 million Americans with pre-existing conditions would be at risk of not being able to access or afford health coverage," it added.
As the House holds its vote to repeal Obamacare, Obama is hosting individuals at the White House who say they have benefited from the healthcare law,
The Hill is reporting.
The Obamacare repeal bill
Cruz introduced on Monday has 44 co-sponsors, which includes Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
"This repeal is pro-growth, pro-jobs, and pro-liberty," Cruz said in a statement.
However, Republican lawmakers are still facing an uphill battle to repeal Obamacare in the face of the White House veto threat, as it is very unlikely Republicans will have enough votes to override a veto.
Senate Republicans would need a total of 60 votes to prevent a filibuster and 67 votes to override Obama's veto. The 54 Republicans in the Senate would not be enough to accomplish either, without help from the Democrats.
"In addition to taking away Americans' healthcare security, the bill would increase the deficit, remove policies that have helped slow healthcare cost growth and improve the quality of care patients receive, and detract from the work the Congress could be doing to further job creation and economic growth," the White House statement said.
"If the President were presented with H.R. 596, he would veto it," it added.