WASHINGTON, July 18 (Xinhua) -- Three Republican senators said on Tuesday they would oppose a procedural vote to move forward a new GOP plan only aiming to repeal Obamacare, leaving Republicans again short of votes.
Lisa Murkowski, Shelley Moore Capito and Susan Collins indicated that they would not vote to move forward a GOP repeal of the Affordable Care Act, known as the Obamacare, to the Senate floor without implementing an immediate replacement.
Their opposition came after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell conceded failure in efforts to repeal and replace the Obamacare late Monday night as more Republican senators defected against the revised Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), a GOP bill designed to overhaul the Obamacare.
But McConnell said the Senate will vote to take up the House-passed bill in coming days while calling for a repeal vote on Obamacare with a two-year delay for substitute.
"I regret that the effort to repeal and immediately replace the failures of Obamacare will not be successful," McConnell said on the Senate floor Tuesday. "That doesn't mean we should give up."
However, members of McConnell's caucus said a repeal-only bill would not have their support, shortly after he made those remarks.
"My position on this issue is driven by its impact on West Virginians," Senator Capito said in a statement. "With that in mind, I cannot vote to repeal Obamacare without a replacement plan that addresses my concerns and the needs of West Virginians."
"To repeal there has to be a replacement," Senator Murkowski of Alaska told reporters. "There's enough chaos already, and this would just contribute to it."
Separately, Senator Collins of Maine said she was opposing the repeal and delay proposal as it is not constructive to repeal a law closely associated with the health care system but only plan to come up with a replacement over the next two years.
