Summary of the 2015/2016 Obamacare Repeal Bill

At the end of 2015 and the beginning of 2016, the House and Senate both passed legislation to repeal the vast majority of Obamacare. The bill, H.R. 3762, the Restoring Americans’ Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act, passed the Senate by a vote of 52-47 and passed the House by a vote of 240-181. If the bill had not been vetoed, it would have done the following:

• Repealed the individual and employer mandate tax penalties.
• Repealed all Obamacare taxes.
• Provided a two-year transition from Medicaid expansion and exchange tax subsidies.
• Repealed the expansion of eligibility for Medicaid, two years after enactment of the bill. 
• Repealed the health exchange subsidies, including the premium tax credit and cost-sharing subsidies to help people buy insurance, two years after enactment of the bill.
• Retained Obamacare insurance regulations, including guaranteed issuance of coverage for people with pre-existing conditions and Essential Health Benefits (EHBs).
• Blocked funding for Planned Parenthood for one year while providing additional funds to community health centers for women’s health care.
• Repealed the prevention and public health fund.
• Repealed the small business tax credit for employers with fewer than 25 employees and annual wages under $50,000 for the purchase of health insurance.
• Including the macroeconomic impact of the bill, CBO estimated the legislation would have reduced spending at the time by $1.349 trillion and reduced taxes $833 billion.
• In total, the bill would have reduced the deficit by $516 billion, according to CBO’s estimate at the time.

The bill would have reduced health care coverage by 32 million people, according to CBO’s January 2017 estimate. However, that estimate is based on the same faulty baseline and assumptions that have brought into question the validity of CBO’s latest health care projections.
 
Impact on Tax Reform: This bill would have sweeping implications for a larger tax reform package. By removing Obamacare tax increases, this bill lowers CBO’s tax revenue baseline by $833 billion and pays for it with spending cuts. The lower projected revenue baseline means that all new revenue from tax reform (through removing special interest deductions, for instance) would be applied to lowering rates instead of offsetting the removal Obamacare tax hikes. In short, this means that at least $833 billion that may have otherwise been applied to cutting Obamacare taxes could now be applied to lowering rates.