Senate expected to retain an Obamacare tax in search for votes

July 12--Revisions to the Senate GOP health care bill are expected to keep in place a tax on investment income, which Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey calls "a bad idea" but one that's unlikely to sway him into the "no" category.

The change was among a short list of tweaks that Toomey described to reporters following a lunch Tuesday in which Senate Republicans were briefed on a revised health care bill expected to be released later this week.

Toomey has pushed for repealing all of the taxes created to pay for the Affordable Care Act, but said Tuesday that a 3.8 percent levy on investment income for those who make more than $200,000 will remain in effect.

"I don't think it's a deal-breaker for me, but it's definitely a negative because it's going to contribute to slower economic growth," Toomey said. "That's part of the reason that we've had such feeble growth since the severe recession is because of all of these taxes and all of the regulatory policies."

Leaving the tax in place would be "discouraging," Toomey said: "But it looks as though I have lost that argument."

Toomey also said $45 billion targeted for addiction treatment, which was discussed before senators left for the July 4th break, is still expected to be included.

It's unclear how much those changes have swayed reluctant Republican senators, though GOP leaders say they're aiming for a vote as soon as next week.

Democrats, including Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, remain uniformly opposed.

Casey told reporters during a weekly Democratic press conference that he recently visited nine Pennsylvania counties that voted for President Donald Trump in last year's election, and heard from those at schools, hospitals, and senior centers who shared his concerns about the bill's effects.

"I saw and heard in those counties a very high degree of concern about the bill," Casey said, referring to the GOP plan as an "extreme, obnoxious, obscene" proposal.

President blames Democrats for Senate bill written by GOP leadership stalling before key vote. Dave Bryan reports.

President blames Democrats for Senate bill written by GOP leadership stalling before key vote. Dave Bryan reports.

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