Mulvaney on Health Care: Expect a Breakthrough This Week
Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said there could be a breakthrough this week with health care.
“I think they are real close. I’m hearing this morning that Congressman Fred Upton from Michigan has an idea on how to sort of address some of the issues he sees in the bill,†Mulvaney said during an interview with the FOX Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo.
Upton, who previously chaired the House Energy and Commerce Committee, dealt a major blow to the current GOP health care bill on Tuesday, saying he would vote against it over concerns about pre-existing conditions.
“I don’t share those concerns, but I respect Fred’s position. He’s the former chairman of the committee that has oversight over health care on the Hill, so certainly he has the right to check in on the bill,†he said.
So far, the GOP is short of the 216 votes needed to pass the latest bill, but Mulvaney remains confident that it could pass by the end of the week.
“We welcome his input and if he’s got some ideas that would be acceptable to everybody else and how to fix that in his mind, that may be the lynch pin that we get to get the moderates to support the bill as well,†he said.
He added: “These are not supposed to be pre-cooked deals done in back rooms, they are supposed to be out in the open. Let the lawmakers make some law, let the president participate in the process and who knows, at the end, we might get a really, really good piece of legislation.â€