4 Republicans defy Speaker Johnson to force House vote on extending ACA subsidies

Four centrist Republicans broke with Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday, signing a Democratic-led petition that forces a House vote on extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that have lowered health insurance costs for millions of Americans since the pandemic.

The dramatic move occurred the same day House Republican leaders passed a healthcare bill that doesn’t address the looming expiration of ACA tax credits at year’s end, which will trigger substantial premium increases for many Americans.

Republican Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick, Robert Bresnahan and Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, along with Mike Lawler of New York, signed the petition initiated by Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries. Their signatures pushed the petition to the critical threshold of 218, guaranteeing a vote as early as January under House rules.

“Unfortunately, it is House leadership themselves that have forced this outcome,” Fitzpatrick said in a statement.

Speaker Johnson downplayed the significance of the revolt, telling reporters, “I have not lost control of the House,” while acknowledging the challenges of governing with the GOP’s razor-thin majority. “These are not normal times,” Johnson added.

The rebellion followed days of negotiations about the health care subsidies. Johnson had discussed allowing vulnerable GOP lawmakers to vote on bills that would temporarily extend the subsidies with modifications like income caps. However, leadership ultimately sided with the conservative wing of the party, which has consistently criticized the subsidies as propping up “Obamacare.”

Instead, House Republicans advanced a different health care package Wednesday that focused on expanding insurance coverage options for small businesses and the self-employed. The bill passed 216-211, largely along party lines, with Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky being the sole Republican joining Democrats in opposition.

Fitzpatrick and Lawler had attempted to add a temporary extension of the subsidies to the bill but were rebuffed.

“Our only request was a floor vote on this compromise, so that the American People’s voice could be heard on this issue. That request was rejected,” Fitzpatrick explained. He and his colleagues filed multiple amendments that leadership rejected, leaving them with few options.

“As I’ve stated many times before, the only policy that is worse than a clean three-year extension without any reforms, is a policy of complete expiration without any bridge,” Fitzpatrick said.

Lawler echoed this sentiment, stating that leadership’s failure to permit a vote left him “no choice” but to sign the petition.

The move highlights the precarious position of moderate Republicans, particularly those representing competitive districts that Democrats have targeted in their bid to retake the House majority in 2024. Democrats have pledged to make healthcare affordability a central campaign issue.

Johnson expressed his displeasure with discharge petitions, saying, “I don’t like them. It’s not the way it’s supposed to work.”

Jeffries, who had been urging Republicans to join the effort for weeks, celebrated the bipartisan coalition. “Our position from the very beginning was that we are standing on the right side of the American people who want to see the Affordable Care Act tax credits extended,” he said.

The Republican Party’s slim 220-213 majority means that even a few defectors can derail leadership plans. While Johnson has typically accommodated the conservative wing of his conference, this time it was the moderates who revolted.

Discharge petitions rarely succeed in forcing floor action, but 2023 has proven an exception. Earlier this year, a bipartisan petition led to the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Even if the Democrats’ subsidy bill passes the House in January, its path through the Republican-led Senate remains uncertain. Just last week, Senate Republicans voted down a three-year extension of the subsidies and proposed an alternative that also failed. However, four Republican senators did cross party lines to support the Democratic proposal.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune criticized the Democratic extension as “an attempt to disguise the real impact of Obamacare’s spiraling health care costs.”

Senator Thom Tillis viewed the House developments as potentially positive for generating a bipartisan compromise. “If we’re not talking, we’re not making progress. This continues the discussion,” Tillis said.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer acknowledged the political significance of reaching 218 signatures but warned that “the damage has now been done, no matter what happens,” as the timing makes it impossible to prevent premium increases that will take effect January 1st.