December 2015

Last week, the U.S. Senate passed legislation to repeal significant parts of the Affordable Care Act. The repeal legislation was included in the Senate budget reconciliation bill. Unlike most bills considered by the Senate that generally require a 60 vote majority to consider any legislation, budget reconciliation bills operate under a privileged motion and only require 51 votes consider and secure final passage. The House has passed a similar budget reconciliation bill that also repeals significant parts of the Affordable Care Act.

The Senate action is significant in that it is the first time the Senate has passed legislation to repeal all or parts of the Affordable Care Act. While the U.S. House of Representatives has passed several bills to repeal all or part of the Affordable Care Act, Senate Democrats have been able to use the filibuster, which requires a 60 vote majority to consider legislation, to prevent repeal legislation from being considered. The White House has issued a veto statement regarding the Senate bill.