WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has expressed support for repealing Obamacare's individual mandate, a key provision Senate Republicans are hoping to use to offset the cost of their tax reform bill.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates repealing the requirement that nearly all Americans purchase health insurance would save $338 billion over ten years but increase the number of uninsured people by 13 million in 2027.
In an op-ed in Alaska newspapers, Murkowski said she believes the federal government should not force anyone to buy something they do not wish to buy in order to avoid being taxed.
'It is important to emphasize that eliminating this tax penalty does not take care away from anyone,' Murkowski said. 'Instead, it provides important relief to those who have been penalized for choosing not to buy unaffordable insurance.'
Murkowski voted against Republican legislation to repeal and replace Obamacare, arguing the bills went far beyond the fundamental problems presented by the healthcare reform law and would have unnecessarily taken away access to care.
The Alaska Senator said she supports bipartisan healthcare legislation introduced by Senators Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and Patty Murray, D-Wash., which she said would stabilize markets, provide more control to states and more choices to individuals.
Murkowski's support for repealing the individual mandate has been described as providing a boost for GOP tax reform efforts, although a spokesperson for the Senator told Politico the comments should not be construed as support for the tax bill.
'Senator Murkowski said on Friday that she will be reviewing the work of the Finance Committee over the Thanksgiving holiday and plans to look at the entire package before coming to any conclusion on the legislation,' the spokesperson said.
Republicans can only afford to lose two votes and still pass their tax reform bill through the budget reconciliation process, and Senator Ron Johnson, R-Wis., has already expressed opposition to the bill in its current form.
Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, has said she wants to see changes to the bill, while Senators Bob Corker, R-Tenn., Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and John McCain, R-Ariz., have also voiced concerns about the legislation.
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