Hogan Among Governors Urging Senate To Abandon Repeal Then Replace Effort

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of 11 governors says Senate Republicans should abandon the effort to repeal the Obama health care law and replace it later.

In a statement on Tuesday, the governors, who hold considerable sway with their senators, said the latest approach pushed by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell would leave millions of Americans without insurance coverage.

The governors said the best step is a bipartisan approach and a fix to the unstable insurance markets.

Among the Republicans on the statement were Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, Maryland's Larry Hogan, Massachusetts' Charlie Baker and Ohio's John Kasich. Also signing on was Independent Gov. Bill Walker of Alaska.

McConnell lacked the votes to push ahead on his plan as three Republican senators — Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine — opposed it.

"Congress should work to make health insurance more affordable by controlling costs and stabilizing the market, and we are pleased to see a growing number of senators stand up for this approach. The Senate should immediately reject efforts to 'repeal' the current system and replace sometime later. This could leave millions of Americans without coverage. The best next step is for both parties to come together and do what we can all agree on: fix our unstable insurance markets. Going forward, it is critically important that governors are brought to the table to provide input, and we stand ready to work with lawmakers in an open, bipartisan way to provide better insurance for all Americans."

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