Sen. John McCain John Sidney McCainMcSally says current Senate should vote on Trump nominee Say what you will about the presidential candidates, as long as it isn't 'They're too old' The electoral reality that the media ignores MORE (R-Ariz.) explained Wednesday that he voted against a scaled-down ObamaCare repeal bill last week because people in his home state would be deeply hurt by the measure.

"Arizona was about to get screwed, if I may, under this plan," McCain told Phoenix-based radio host Mike Broomhead.

McCain said that Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a fellow Republican, had asked him to push for three amendments in order to make the measure acceptable for the state to adopt.

Arizona is facing "very serious problems," McCain said, listing higher premiums and deductibles as well as having only one insurer in the state's healthcare marketplace.

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Republican leaders hoped passing a pared-down ObamaCare repeal bill would allow members of the House and Senate to continue to work on a broader healthcare reform measure in a conference between both chambers.

McCain indicated that while he was prepared to propose the amendments advocated by Ducey, he voted against the bill because he believed it could pass in conference without him having a say on the broader measure.

"I had no input frankly as to how it was going to be fixed except to vote 'yes' or 'no' once it came out of the conference," he told Broomhead, adding that the conference would be "short-circuiting" the process of amending the legislation through repeated committee hearings and debates.

McCain praised Sens. Lamar Alexander Andrew (Lamar) Lamar AlexanderChamber of Commerce endorses McSally for reelection Trump health officials grilled over reports of politics in COVID-19 response Now is the time to renew our focus on students and their futures MORE (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray Patricia (Patty) Lynn MurrayTrump health officials grilled over reports of politics in COVID-19 response CDC director pushes back on Caputo claim of 'resistance unit' at agency The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - Pence lauds Harris as 'experienced debater'; Trump, Biden diverge over debate prep MORE (D-Wash.), the top members of the Senate Health Committee, for their plan to hold bipartisan hearings next month on how to stabilize and strengthen ObamaCare's individual insurance market.

“That is the way it should proceed,” he said about the Health Committee's plan to discuss the issue of "collapsing markets."

The panel announced the efforts as Senate Republican leaders openly indicated they were unsure of their next steps on healthcare after a repeal bill failed to pass in the upper chamber on Friday.

McCain cast the crucial vote to kill the pared-down ObamaCare repeal measure, known as a "skinny" bill. He joined GOP Sens. Susan Collins Susan Margaret CollinsSenate Republicans face tough decision on replacing Ginsburg Democratic senator calls for eliminating filibuster, expanding Supreme Court if GOP fills vacancy What Senate Republicans have said about election-year Supreme Court vacancies MORE (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski Lisa Ann MurkowskiSenate Republicans face tough decision on replacing Ginsburg What Senate Republicans have said about election-year Supreme Court vacancies McConnell says Trump nominee to replace Ginsburg will get Senate vote MORE (Alaska) in rejecting the measure. Fellow Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey (Jeff) Lane FlakeRepublican former Michigan governor says he's voting for Biden Maybe they just don't like cowboys: The president is successful, some just don't like his style Bush endorsing Biden? Don't hold your breath MORE (R), who is up for reelection in 2018, voted for the bill.