Senate rejects healthcare reform repeal

WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- The U.S. Senate voted along party lines Wednesday to reject a Republican-sponsored bill to repeal the healthcare reform law enacted in 2010.

All 50 Senate Democrats present were joined by one independent in voting down the GOP measure, The Washington Post reported. The measure drew support from 47 Republicans present for the vote.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Sen. Joe Lieberman, Ind-Conn., were not present, the Post said.

The Senate voted 81-17 in favor of an amendment by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., to repeal an unpopular tax-reporting provision of the law that critics said imposes an undue burden on small businesses. However, the Senate voted 44-54 against an amendment by Michigan Democrat Carl Levin that would have compensated for revenue lost under the Stabenow amendment by eliminating oil-industry tax breaks, the Post said.

During debate on the reform rollback measure, sponsored by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., vowed that repeal "will not go forward."

Durbin called a Judiciary Committee hearing to consider the constitutionality of the law, which a federal judge in Florida struck down Monday.

"Many who argue the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional are the same people who condemn judicial activism," he said. "They are pushing the Supreme Court to strike down this law because they could not defeat it in Congress and they are losing the argument in the court of public opinion."

During debate Wednesday, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., dismissed the Congressional Budget Office's estimate that repeal would increase the deficit by $230 billion as "garbage in, garbage out," The Hill reported. He said the CBO failed to account for rising reimbursements to Medicare physicians, which he said was estimated to cost $208 billion over 10 years. He also predicted a long-term care insurance program would eventually have to be funded by the government.

The National Retail Federation endorsed repeal Wednesday.

Requirements for employers to provide health coverage or pay penalties, to take effect in 2014, are "deterring job growth today at the expense of tomorrow's economy," said federation leader David French.

McConnell said Republicans forced the Senate vote because it "would be a dereliction of duty if Republicans didn't fight for repeal."

"We made a promise to our constituents that we would vote to repeal this bill on their behalf -- and that's just what we intend to do," McConnell said.

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed a bill along party lines last month repealing the healthcare overhaul. The House has not acted yet on the amendment approved by the Senate Wednesday to eliminate the tax-reporting provision for small businesses.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he wanted to get the repeal effort "out of the system" so the Senate could move ahead with other business, CNN reported.