In a recent appearance on Fox News, Representative Jimmy Patronis (R-FL) discussed the ongoing battle for healthcare funding, warning that a second government shutdown is possible.
Rep. Patronis noted that Congress is in the middle of working on appropriations bills for Fiscal Year 2026, with three already signed into law. However, he acceded that healthcare will be the "biggest point of contention that we are going to have to iron out."
With the midterms approaching and all of Congress on the ballot, extending the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") subsidies is still a debate, and with 2026 a midterm year, Republicans are in a precarious position.
"The Obamacare product has been broken since day one," Rep. Patronis responded. "It continued to be kicked down the road, and there are those of us that would like to try to fix it."
According to the Florida Congressman, the challenge is that "we are sitting on a literal two-seat majority in the chamber."
While Patronis said he would like to abolish Obamacare, "we simply do not have the votes to be able to pull that off."
He expressed support for Senator Rick Scott's (R-FL) proposition of "sending dollars to the policy holder and allowing them to shop for their solutions and allow the customer to go out and seek what is the best policy for them as opposed to just writing a blank check for the insurance company, which then sets the rates."
Tension over healthcare funding could lead to a second government shutdown in January, and Patronis shared his concern about the fallout.
"This is why I think it is important that the Senate does see a pathway of getting more of these funding bills back to the House so we can get them out," he responded. "So now we are narrowing the scope of what is actually being voted on to avert a government shutdown at the end of January."
