GOP turns to arcane budget process to repeal Obamacare

WASHINGTON (AP) — Yes, Donald Trump is taking charge and Republicans control both the House and Senate, having won an election promising to repeal President Barack Obama's health care law.

[...] in Congress, getting from Point A to point B rarely consists of a straight line, and Democrats in the Senate can easily gum up the works with procedural blockades.

Since Republicans hold the Senate with just 52 votes, they are forced to employ an arcane, fast-track budget process to avoid a Democratic filibuster.

The budget plan is mainly illustrative, but its passage permits binding follow-up legislation to actually repeal the 2010 health care law.

The ensuing repeal legislation — a budget "reconciliation" bill in Washington-speak — would be written by a handful of House and Senate committees with jurisdiction over health issues.

[...] that could mean too many people who are sick or have pre-existing maladies sign up, while healthier people stay away from the health insurance plans that are available on the law's state exchanges.

The Trump team promises to use them to undo whatever Obama policies they can but also to try to smooth the transition for insurance markets that may struggle in the aftermath of Obamacare's repeal.