House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy took aim at the House Freedom Caucus, saying they were acting irresponsible in their Obamacare repeal efforts. | Getty McCarthy pans conservatives' Obamacare repeal proposals

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Friday panned conservatives’ ideas to change the House GOP’s Obamacare replacement, even as the far-right pleads with President Donald Trump to heed their requests.

The California Republican, who’s known to have a close relationship with Trump, blasted the House Freedom Caucus’ push for a repeal-only bill as irresponsible. Canning the health care law without a replacement intact “would double your premiums and you would collapse the market,” he said.


“Then you’re going to sit here and wait and hope you get 60 votes?” he added, referring to the Senate’s threshold to circumvent a filibuster. “I do not believe that’s the best option.” The GOP leadership plan is carefully tailored to adhere to budget rules that allow Senate passage with a simple majority and avoid the need for Democratic support.

HFC members and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) have been pushing GOP leaders to simply move what they call a “clean” repeal of Obamacare that includes no replacement, as they did last Congress. Then, they argue, lawmakers can craft the replacement after.

McCarthy also cast doubt on another idea floated by conservatives: speeding up the phase-out of the Medicaid expansion from Dec. 31, 2019 to the end of this or next year.

“I think right now that’d be very difficult to do,” McCarthy responded when asked whether he was open to a quicker wind-down. “We’ve had the discussion … in committee.”

Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) followed up, saying Republicans have concerns about gaps in health insurance coverage that might occur under such a proposal.

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“What we want to make sure is that we don’t create any gaps for people as we give power back to the states, as we go to a per capita system, as we repeal Obamacare,” the Oregon Republican said. “I’ve had different discussions about timelines with governors, with insurance commissioners with leaders of each of these different groups."

Walden then pointedly noted that all Republicans on his panel voted for the bill — including those from the Freedom Caucus and the Republican Study Committee, who are both backing a swifter end to the Medicaid expansion.

Conservatives on that committee still hope to make the changes at a later date. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), for example, didn’t offer his amendment to do so because he said he was working with leadership and the conservative groups on a strategy.