Keldy Ortiz

Staff Writer, @keldyortiz

While U.S. House members on Friday overwhelmingly passed a vote to start in motion the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, Rep. Tom MacArthur was New Jersey's lone Republican to say no.

MacArthur of the state's 3rd District was one of nine Republicans who voted no, in a final vote of 227-198. No House Democrats voted for the repeal. The vote set forth the motion to repeal the program known as Obamacare.

President-elect Donald J. Trump at a press conference had vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare.

"Both parties have missed opportunities to fix our health care system — one of the greatest priorities of our time — and now we're faced with an Obamacare system that is literally falling apart," MacArthur said in a statement. "Skyrocketing premiums, disappearing insurance plans and out-of-control deductibles are failing the American people. I lost today, but I will keep fighting to carefully, rather than quickly, replace Obamacare, and make sure that all Americans can buy the health insurance they need and that nobody has the rug pulled out from under them.”

The vote against the repeal by MacArthur, who took office in 2014, contrasts with the position of Democrat John Adler, who represented the 3rd District until he died in 2011. Adler voted against Obamacare when he was elected to Congress.