Thune says Senate GOP will bring up alternative health care bill for a vote

2 hours ago 5

Washington — Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced Tuesday that Republicans intend to put up a GOP-led health care bill for a vote alongside Democrats' proposal to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits later this week.

"This program desperately needs to be reformed, the Democrats have decided, 'We're not going to do anything to reform it,' and so we'll see where the votes are on Thursday," Thune said at a news conference following a lunch meeting of Republican senators on Tuesday. "But we will have an alternative that we will put up that reflects the views of the Republicans here in the United States Senate."

Thune, a South Dakota Republican, outlined that the Senate will vote on a measure unveiled earlier this week by GOP Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Mike Crapo of Idaho.

The legislation, named the Health Care Freedom for Patients Act, doesn't extend the enhanced tax credits. Instead, it would redirect funds to health savings accounts for those who use bronze plans on state exchanges.

"It actually does make health insurance premiums more affordable," Thune said. "It delivers the benefit directly to the patient, not to the insurance company, and it does it in a way that actually saves money to the taxpayer. That is a win-win proposal."

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks to reporters following a Senate Republican policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 9, 2025, in Washington, D.C.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, speaking shortly after Thune, called the Cassidy-Crapo bill "junk insurance."

Thune's announcement comes as Democrats plan to bring up a three-year extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits for a vote on Thursday. Democrats have the option to put forward a bill of their choosing as part of the agreement that ended the government shutdown.

The enhanced premium tax credit helped around 22 million low- and middle-income Americans purchase health insurance in 2025. Premium costs are expected to increase by an average of more than $1,000 annually when they expire in January, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. And KFF estimated that the expiration of the tax credits would more than double annual premiums, from $888 on average in 2025 to $1,904 in 2026.

The planned Democratic measure in the Senate is highly unlikely to pick up support from enough Republicans to advance, although Democrats hope it will force GOP members to take a politically unpopular vote against extending the subsidies. A side-by-side vote on a GOP proposal would likely alleviate some pressure on Republicans, though some have advocated against the exercise, since it wouldn't likely produce a solution.

Senate Republicans have been considering their path forward for weeks, and a number of other GOP lawmakers have unveiled their own plans in recent days. Some of those proposals would extend the tax credits with new limits, including a plan from Sens. Bernie Moreno of Ohio and Susan Collins of Maine that would extend them by two years. Another plan from Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas would extend the credits by one year before redirecting funds into HSA-style accounts in 2027.

With 53 Republicans in the upper chamber, the GOP-led bill is not expected to pick up enough support to reach the 60-vote threshold required to advance most legislation in the Senate. The Democratic bill is also expected to fall short.

Thune told reporters Tuesday morning that Republicans don't see the Democratic bill "as a law-making exercise."

"The Democrats clearly don't, which is why they're putting up what is a show vote — it's a messaging bill," Thune said. "And then we'll see after that whether or not they are serious about doing something, and if there are at least enough of them to find a path forward. We'll see."

Thune said Democrats' plan is designed "to make a political point."

"At some point if they want to make a law, I think we've got people on our side who are interested in doing that," he added.