GOP fears fallout from planned ACA repeal votes

Photo / Courtesy of Barclaycard U.S. Barclaycard U.S. Interim CEO Curt Hess and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins speaks with an employee inside the company's newly expanded and renovated call center in Wilton in this file photo from 2015.

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As Republicans plan their initial votes in January to dismantle President Barack Obama's health care law, some lawmakers worry that while Congress attempts to find a replacement, angry voters and frightened health insurers could push the party toward a political cliff.

The Associated Press said Republicans want to vote to get rid of much as possible of the current health care law, even though the changes wouldn’t take effect for as long as three years while the new president writes legislation for a new health care system.

"It's going to be a difficult challenge to pass a replacement" for Obama's law and make sure some people don't lose coverage, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said. Health insurers will need time to adjust to a new system and if Congress waits until the last minute to enact a new law, "It's not going to work," she said.

The AP also noted many congressional Republicans worry about being politically vulnerable during the transition between a repeal vote and replacing Obama's health law. Some 20 million people now covered would face uncertainty about their benefits going forward, the AP writes, while unsettled health insurers might go into self-protection mode, boosting premiums or even stopping sales of policies.