Seven questions on health reform (with bonus Capitol sunrise pics)

Tim Jost and I wrote an op-ed for the New York Times today: “Seven questions about health reform.”

Capitol Hill Sunrise, January 9, 2017

We offer many questions about what Republicans plan to do in their “repeal and replace” or “repeal and delay” approach to the ACA. The single most important point in our essay is simple: Congress should not repeal ACA until they have submitted their specific replacement proposal for analysis by nonpartisan authorities such as the Congressional Budget Office and the Tax Policy Center to determine how the repeal will affect health insurance coverage, state and federal finances, and individual tax burdens. That practice was followed in the long debate leading to the ACA. It should be followed now.

Bonus Washington sunrise pictures below

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Why did normal order go away?

Later today the House is to vote on HR 325, a bill to suspend the debt limit until mid-May and then the debt limit will automatically be increased by the new debt incurred during the interim.* The idea is to take away the notion of defaulting and then move toward normal order budgeting (Senate and House do their thing, including instructions to committees for things like tax reform, health policy, etc.) and then they bang it out in a conference committee(s). Just a few thoughts:

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