It may be increasing (NYT):
“It’s no longer just a piece of paper that you can repeal and it goes away,” said Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin and a Tea Party favorite. “There’s something there. We have to recognize that reality. We have to deal with the people that are currently covered under Obamacare.”
Ezra thinks Johnson’s “realization is how repeal-and-replace becomes criticize-and-reform”:
Republicans who want to reform Obamacare remain the (growing) minority. But in another sign that Republicans see the politics of Obamacare changing, there’s more talk of producing an actual Republican alternative before the 2014 elections. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), for instance, plans to unveil the successor to his Patients’ Choice Act act early next year. That, too, is an admission that something like the Affordable Care Act is here to stay, and Republicans need to begin proposing policy for a post-health reform world rather than fantasizing about a return to a pre-health reform world.
Philip Klein wonders how GOP candidates will decide which reforms to support when “it’s very difficult to predict what the health care landscape will look like a few months from now, let alone several years from now when a potential Republican president would have a chance to make changes”:
Without knowing how much of Obamacare could be in play, it’s hard to settle on a policy. On the one hand, basing policy on the assumption that Obamacare can be entirely repealed is likely unrealistic, while on the other hand, treating Obamacare as mostly untouchable could cause Republicans to preemptively concede too much policy ground. Mounting failures of Obamacare could put more of the law in play than seemed possible just a few months ago.
Most likely, the future of Republican health care policy will be sorted out as its presidential candidates begin to lay out their plans during the 2015 primaries. But those candidates will have to adopt policies in an environment that’s largely a product of what happens in 2014.
The Dish 