Infographic: Update—A Brief History of ACA Repeal and Replace Efforts

When Donald Trump was elected president in November 2016, repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) suddenly became an attainable goal for Republicans in Congress. However, with a slim 52-48 majority in the Senate, competing motivations of GOP lawmakers, and the complex rules of budget reconciliation to contend with, the path to that goal was more arduous than anticipated and ultimately did not result in legislation being passed before the September 30 budget deadline.

From the release of the House’s first healthcare bill to the eventual defeat of the Senate’s revised bill to the failure of a last-minute repeal plan, it can be hard to keep track of the different versions of ACA repeal-and-replace legislation winding their way through Congress.

This infographic was first published after several repeal bills were rejected by the Senate in late July, and it seemed that Congress would move on from healthcare to other legislative priorities. It has been updated to include the Graham-Cassidy bill, which was pulled on September 26 before a Senate vote could be held. The bill had represented Republicans’ last chance at passing repeal before the window to use 2017 budget reconciliation rules expired.

For a look back at the legislative twists and turns of ACA repeal efforts in 2017, see the infographic below.