Darrell Issa’s Ongoing Battle Against Obamacare and Its Implications

In 2017, a group of 300 protesters gathered outside Representative Darrell Issa’s office in California. Their demonstration, marked by the display of homemade tombstones, was a response to his vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. This protest continued weekly until Issa decided not to seek reelection the following year.

Now back in Congress, Issa resumes his efforts to dismantle the widely supported health care program. This month, Issa was among 196 House Republicans who opposed a bipartisan plan to reinstate Obamacare tax credits. These credits previously helped reduce insurance costs for around 22 million Americans, including 8,000 from Issa’s district. Some individuals have experienced a quadrupling of their premiums since the credits expired at the beginning of the year.

The rejected proposal aimed to extend these credits for an additional three years. Although it passed the House, its fate in the Senate remains uncertain.

During the debate on the extension, Issa promoted an alternative proposal focused on the complete elimination of Obamacare. “There will be less subsidy, there will be better scrutiny over fraud, and there’s intended to be a real phase out of Obamacare,” Issa stated in a December 9 interview with Fox Business.

Issa and other Republicans assert that fraud is rampant within Obamacare credits, a claim disputed by health policy experts. Michael Gusmano, a health policy professor at Lehigh University, argued to CNBC that the level of fraud is minimal and that enhancing security measures would be more effective than cutting subsidies. “It really is trivial, the scope of fraud,” Gusmano commented. “It’s just a scare tactic to justify the reduction of the federal government’s role in subsidizing health insurance.”

Between 2011 and 2017, Issa voted 17 times to repeal Obamacare. During President Donald Trump’s first term, Issa supported the American Health Care Act, a bill proposed to partially repeal Obamacare. According to the Center for American Progress, nearly 37,000 people in Issa’s district would have lost insurance if the bill passed.

Initially hesitant about the American Health Care Act, Issa ultimately cast the deciding vote that allowed it to clear the House. The bill was later halted in the Senate after Republican Senator John McCain’s pivotal vote against it.

Issa has also expressed reservations about other government health programs. Last year, he backed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB), which introduced substantial Medicaid cuts. Democratic analysis from the Joint Economic Committee predicts that over 24,000 people in his district may lose coverage due to the act, with the number rising to more than 32,000 when considering the expiry of Obamacare tax credits.

Rural hospitals, reliant on Medicaid reimbursements, are also at risk. Two hospitals in Murrieta and Temecula could face a combined $14 million drop in revenue.

Issa is currently campaigning for another term, with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee identifying him as one of the most vulnerable Republican incumbents. In 2024, Issa secured CA-48 with nearly 60% of the vote. However, redistricting in California is anticipated to make the district more competitive.