Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) announced Sunday morning at a Texas Tribune panel event that the Graham-Cassidy effort to repeal Obamacare does not have his full support yet.
Saying he would "like to be a yes," Cruz noted that "Right now, they don't have my vote and I don't think they have Mike Lee's (R-UT) either. I want to be a yes, I want to get there because I think that Obamacare is a disaster. But the price to getting there, I believe, is focusing on consumer freedom."
Cruz advocated for a bill that allows more consumer competition, something different than what Obamacare is currently doing.
"What does Obamacare do? Fewer choices, less options, less competition, prices rise. If you want people to have access to health insurance, you want prices to fall."
.@Tedcruz says the Graham-Cassidy bill doesn’t have his vote right now. #TribFest17 https://t.co/SNK83NDGvA pic.twitter.com/7PNokY0WTT
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) September 24, 2017
Cruz's potential no-vote increases the likelihood that this bout of Obamacare repeal will fail. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who once campaigned on "leading the fight to repeal Obamacare," also announced Friday he will not be voting for the bill.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has also stated that he will not be bullied into something he does not support. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), a moderate Republican, told CNN's State of the Union she has a hard time envisioning support for the bill.
"I have a number of very serious reservations about it," Collins said. "I'm concerned about the impact on cost and coverage. We already have a problem under the Affordable Care act with the cost of premiums and deductibles, and finally, I'm very concerned about the erosion of protections for people with pre-existing conditions."
Collins: 'Very difficult for me to envision a scenario' where she backs GOP health care bill - CNNPolitics https://t.co/UVmHATO2jC
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) September 24, 2017