Deputy White House Press Secretary: CBO Unable To Predict Outcome Of GOP Health Care Bill
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The White House fired back at the Congressional Budget Office after they released the score of the House Republican bill that would replace the Affordable Care Act and estimates more than 24 million Americans would lose coverage if the law is enacted.
Lindsay Walters, Deputy White House Press Secretary, disputed the estimates during an interview with Chris Stigall on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT, saying the CBO projections are clearly wrong.
"History has proven the CBO to be totally incapable of accurately predicting how health care legislation will impact health insurance coverage," Walters said. "They were wrong back then and, again, these numbers, they've been unable to accurately predict what is going to happen."
She stated that, despite opposition from the more conservative members of the Republican Party, the bill is still a work in progress and President Donald Trump continues to reach out to all sides for input.
"The president has said that he will work with the House and Speaker Ryan and HHS and OMB to ensure that we have a plan that not only is going to repeal and replace, but is going to be successful. That is the driving force here," Walters explained. "We need to have a health care plan that, unlike Obamacare, which was devastation, we need to have a plan that will help the American people, that will be sustainable. I won't be a short term fix, but a long term fix."
Walters claims the final product will be acceptable to GOP lawmakers and will enable better care for all Americans.
"The object here is to, at the end of the day, ensure that we have a bill that is most beneficial to the American people and we will do what it takes to ensure that and ensure that, not only are we putting something in place that works today, but is sustainable long term," Walters said. "The president and his team will continue to meet with lawmakers and individuals as we work through this process of pushing the bill through other channels and getting it over to the Senate."
