HCR After the Election

After the elections last week, the Republicans now have control of the House of Representatives but Democrats held onto control of the Senate. Republicans picked up at least sixty House seats and at least six Senate seats in the election. With the new Republican majority in the House, a stronger showing in the Senate and greater numbers of GOP governors, the health care debate is expected to focus on implementation of HCR as well as efforts to eliminate it. While full repeal will face a presidential veto, lawmakers will likely pursue changes to HCR.

Republicans could also use the oversight authority of Congress to slow down or block regulations, essentially stalling the law's progress. Congressional hearings are likely to focus on the impact of the immediate reforms on costs and coverage, the outlook for reforms that take effect in 2014 and stronger direct oversight of federal regulators.

The Pew Research Center, a nonprofit research agency, found that voters were divided over whether to repeal health care reform (48%) or maintain or even expand it (47%) in exit polls on Tuesday. However, the major priorities for 2011 include reducing the deficit, creating jobs and boosting the economy.

Thank you for reading this week's HCR update - have a great week.