House Republicans divided over Obamacare as GOP eyes fix after shutdown

By Fox News · Fox News

House Republicans are in preliminary discussions on a healthcare package, as Obamacare continues to be the central sticking point in the ongoing government shutdown. Speaker Mike Johnson , R-La., said on Thursday that lawmakers have begun discussions in "informal working groups" on what healthcare reform, aimed at lowering ballooning medical costs, would look like. But the fight over Obamacare, also known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), continues to drive a wedge within the House GOP. At the heart of the issue are Obamacare subsidies enhanced significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic — enhancements that are set to expire at the end of this year without congressional action. Democrats have been demanding that any deal to end the shutdown be paired with an extension of those credits. And Republicans, while united in wanting to keep the shutdown and Obamacare two separate issues, are divided over how to handle that issue once the shutdown ends. 'THE PANDEMIC'S OVER': GOP, DEM SENATORS SPAR ON CAMERA OVER COSTLY OBAMACARE SUBSIDIES On one side of the divide are members of the House Freedom Caucus, who have signaled vehement opposition to any straightforward extension of the Obamacare credits. "What we really need to do is stop talking about the COVID subsidies, because it's not working, and the entire system that they're based on is a complete and total Titanic that's going down," said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., a member of the conservative group. "Why would we throw any more bad money after this sinking ship?" But some Republican lawmakers are floating a one-year extension as a way to buy Congress more time to find an off-ramp to eventually ending the Obamacare subsidies — something all GOP lawmakers who spoke with Fox News Digital agreed on. DEMOCRATS BLAME GOP FOR OBAMACARE WOES TIED TO PANDEMIC-ERA SUBSIDIES "I am not at all in love with the ACA or Obamacare. I get the concern that many of the members have with it. But as I've said before, if you don't have some…