Gov. McMaster Pens Letter Urging Repeal Of Obamacare

COLUMBIA, S.C., July 13 -- Gov. Henry McMaster, R-S.C., issued the following news release:

"As Congress continues to haggle over the repeal and replacement of Obamacare, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster on Tuesday sent a letter to Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell urging that the law be repealed.

"'The voters elected President Trump and Republican majorities in Congress on promises that they would implement a cost-effective, free market replacement for Obamacare,' he wrote.

"'The cost increases resulting from this top-down, one-size-fits-all approach have resulted in higher insurance premiums and rising health care costs,' he added. 'We must fix this problem before it's too late.' ...

"Meanwhile, McConnell on Tuesday delayed the start of the August recess until the third week of August so that Congress has more time to work on the issue, according to USA TODAY.

"A Senate vote to repeal Obamacare was pulled last month when there wasn't enough support -- 52 votes are needed -- to pass it.

"In his letter, McMaster, who was among the state attorneys general who filed a lawsuit against Obamacare, said that between 2014 and 2017, consumers in South Carolina on the federally-supervised exchanges saw an average 45 percent rate increase that led to canceled coverage.

"Legislation proposed by both the House and Senate address some of his concerns, he said, such as abolishing the individual and employer mandates, providing a free-market accommodation for pre-existing conditions, encouraging innovation in health care to lower costs, and establishing reasonable caps on Medicaid and more state control of Medicaid spending.

"'This would give states the flexibility they need,' he wrote, 'to lower costs without sending them off the fiscal cliff.'"