The news: This afternoon, the House will vote on H.R. 986, a Democratic bill misleadingly titled “Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act.”  The bill, which is strictly #ForThePolitics, has two major flaws:

• The first is that it has nothing to do with protecting patients with pre-existing conditions.  Not one iota in the legislation deals with pre-existing conditions – this is House Democrats’ attempt to mislead the American people and distract from their radical agenda to eliminate the health care plans of more than 158 million Americans.
• Secondly, this bill will hurt states.  H.R. 986 would make it harder for states to offer help to working families trapped in Obamacare.

Scholars at the Heritage Foundation found that this harmful legislation “would undo the Trump administration’s regulatory relief efforts designed to allow more innovative health care solutions, which provided a small escape hatch from Obamacare’s one-size-fits-all solution.”

Heritage stressed that “innovation is key to addressing Obamacare’s failure to offer affordable health care that helps people access the doctors they want to see.”

What the bill should be called: A number of Republicans have offered more fitting names for this absurdly named legislation.

Ways and Means Member George Holding (R-NC) submitted an amendment to have the bill be renamed the “Nothing in This Bill Would Protect Individuals With Pre-Existing Conditions Act.”

And Committee Member Jodey Arrington (R-TX) has suggested the bill be renamed the “The Anti-State Innovation Act.”

SHAMeful legislating: Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, told reporters earlier this week that “this bill is a sham.”

“As Republicans, we’re not going to let the courts take away your pre-existing conditions protections and we’re not going to let the Democrats take away your health care at work,” said Rep. Brady.

“Giving states the ability to design healthcare that’s more affordable, more flexible, that actually works for their families and help them lower those costs, that’s something we all should be agreeing on,” continued Rep. Brady.

But as the Texas lawmaker said, “it’s just unfortunate we’re wasting time on this bill.”