Darrell Issa’s Continued Efforts to Dismantle the Affordable Care Act

California Representative Darrell Issa, once a vocal opponent of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), commonly known as Obamacare, is revisiting his efforts to dismantle the health care program. This comes after a significant protest in 2017 when 300 demonstrators gathered outside his field office to oppose his vote to repeal the ACA. These protests continued until Issa decided against seeking reelection in 2018. Now back in Congress, he remains committed to his mission.

Issa recently joined 195 other House Republicans in voting against a bipartisan initiative aimed at reinstating Obamacare tax credits. These credits, which reduced insurance costs for approximately 22 million Americans, expired on January 1st, leading to a substantial increase in premiums for many, including 8,000 of Issa’s constituents. The proposed legislation to extend these credits for three more years passed the House but faces uncertainty in the Senate.

During the debate over the extension, Issa supported an alternative proposal focused on phasing out Obamacare entirely. “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 have cited fraud as a major issue with Obamacare credits. However, health policy experts, such as Michael Gusmano from Lehigh University, argue that the fraud is minimal. In an interview with CNBC, Gusmano remarked, “It really is trivial, the scope of fraud. It’s just a scare tactic to justify the reduction of the federal government’s role in subsidizing health insurance.”

Issa’s history with Obamacare is marked by his 17 votes to abolish the program between 2011 and 2017. He also supported the American Health Care Act during President Donald Trump’s first term, a bill that would have partially repealed Obamacare. The Center for American Progress estimated that nearly 37,000 people in Issa’s district would lose insurance under this act. Although initially skeptical, Issa cast the tie-breaking vote to pass it in the House, but it ultimately failed in the Senate.

Beyond the ACA, Issa has shown opposition to other government health care initiatives. Last year, he supported the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB), which significantly reduced Medicaid funding. Analysts from the Democratic Joint Economic Committee predict that these cuts could leave over 24,000 individuals uninsured in his district, a figure that could rise to over 32,000 with the expiration of Obamacare tax credits.

Rural hospitals, reliant on Medicaid reimbursements, are also at risk due to OBBB. Two hospitals in Issa’s district, located in Murrieta and Temecula, may experience a combined revenue loss of $14 million.

As Issa seeks another term in office, he is labeled a vulnerable Republican incumbent by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). Despite winning CA-48 with nearly 60% of the vote in 2024, redistricting efforts may render the district more competitive.