In a dramatic turn on Capitol Hill, the ongoing government shutdown has exposed growing rifts within the Republican Party over health care policy, with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) emerging as a surprising voice of dissent. On Tuesday, October 28, 2025, Greene accused House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) of withholding details about a Republican alternative to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, as health care costs and expiring tax subsidies threaten to become a major issue ahead of the 2026 elections.
During a closed GOP conference call, Greene pressed Johnson for specifics on the party’s plan to replace Obamacare and address the ACA tax credits set to lapse at the end of the year. According to The Hill, Johnson responded that committees were “working on it” and had “pages of policy ideas,” but he offered no concrete proposals. Greene, unsatisfied, took to social media to vent her frustration, writing, “You left out that I said I have no respect for the House not being in session passing our bills and the President’s executive orders. I demanded to know from Speaker Johnson what the Republican plan for healthcare is … but he refused to give one policy proposal.” She added, with a hint of sarcasm, “Apparently I have to go into a SCIF [Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility] to find out the Republican healthcare plan!!!” The SCIF, typically reserved for classified intelligence matters, became a symbol of the secrecy Greene perceives around the GOP’s health care strategy.
Greene’s public airing of grievances did not stop with Johnson. She also criticized former President Donald Trump’s political staffers for what she described as heavy-handed control over GOP messaging. As reported by The Daily Mail, Greene told her colleagues on the call that she had “no respect for the House not being in session passing our bills and the President’s executive orders,” reiterating her demand for a clear Republican health care proposal. She has repeatedly pointed to the impact of high health insurance costs on her own family, making the issue deeply personal and highlighting how the looming expiration of ACA tax subsidies could affect millions of Americans.
The government shutdown, now in its 28th day as of October 28, 2025, is the result of a standoff between Democrats and Republicans over funding and health care reform. Democrats have demanded that any government funding bill include an extension of the ACA subsidies, while Republicans have insisted that such negotiations should only take place after the government is reopened. The House GOP’s slim 219-213 majority has made every vote critical, with Greene’s stance carrying particular weight for Johnson’s leadership.
Amid this turmoil, Johnson announced that House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) is leading the GOP’s efforts to craft a health care framework. However, Greene and her allies remain unconvinced by what they see as vague assurances. “Johnson said he’s got ideas and pages of policy ideas and committees of jurisdiction are working on it, but he refused to give one policy proposal to our GOP conference on our own conference call,” Greene revealed on X, formerly Twitter. Her joke about needing to access a SCIF to learn the details of the plan underscored her exasperation with the lack of transparency.
Greene’s criticism extended to the Senate, where she called on Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to “use the nuclear option and reopen the government,” advocating for the abolition of the filibuster to pass funding legislation with a simple majority. Such a move would upend long-standing Senate traditions and is not widely supported, but it reflects the growing sense of urgency and frustration among some Republicans.
Democratic leaders have seized on the GOP’s internal discord. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) took a jab at the Republicans’ long-promised health care plan, posting, “I’ve been waiting at least 15 years for this Republican healthcare plan. Somehow it’s always just right around the corner… two weeks away… concepts of a plan… I’m still waiting.” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) echoed Greene’s concerns, stating, “I agree with Marjorie Taylor Greene. The health care system is broken,” as reported by Politico. Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) accused Republicans of “taking away health care from 15 million Americans” and “doubling premiums for 20 million.” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) criticized Republicans for the shutdown, arguing that it left air traffic controllers unpaid and premiums rising, while the Trump administration supported a $40 billion bailout for corrupt Argentinian presidents. She asserted that Democrats are fighting to protect coverage as “Congressional Republicans chose to shut down the government instead.”
On the Senate side, the impasse continues. CNN’s Kaitlan Collins pressed Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) on the specifics of the GOP’s health care plan. When asked, “Senator, you’re saying that Republicans do have a plan. What is that plan? Can people see it?” Moreno responded, “Absolutely. Well, we have to have PBM [pharmacy benefit manager] reform, we have to look at the ways that we have a lot of waste, fraud, and abuse in the healthcare system. We have to let the marketplace work. There’s no transparency or competition. You look at some things like, for example, the Oklahoma City Surgery Center and what they’re doing. That’s really innovation in healthcare, more remote, having nurses be able to treat patients in a different way. The whole system can be looked at very holistically, but it’s going to take three or four months to really bring a consensus to that plan.”
Moreno’s admission revealed the challenge facing Republicans: while there are broad ideas—such as increasing competition, reforming pharmacy benefit managers, and reducing waste—there is no unified, detailed plan ready for public scrutiny. Moreno further criticized Obamacare as “a total and complete disaster,” arguing that the real driver of rising costs is the structure of the ACA itself, not the COVID-era subsidies set to expire at the end of 2025. He also pointed out that the Biden administration chose to let these subsidies expire at the end of 2025 while extending electric vehicle subsidies through 2032, framing it as a question of misplaced priorities.
As open enrollment for health insurance looms on November 1, 2025, millions of Americans face uncertainty. Collins pressed Moreno on what people should do in the absence of a clear GOP plan, to which he replied, “We can’t fix Obamacare in three months. What I’m telling you is that the Covid year of subsidies are a tiny fraction of any increase. The increase is happening because Obamacare is broken. It’s a complete abject failure.” Moreno insisted that Republicans would bring competition and transparency to the marketplace but acknowledged the need for bipartisan cooperation and more time to develop a consensus.
Meanwhile, former President Trump has largely blamed Democrats for the shutdown and has not indicated direct involvement in negotiations to end it. Both parties appear entrenched, with Democrats demanding immediate action on ACA subsidies and Republicans insisting on reopening the government before any health care talks proceed.
The standoff has highlighted not just the policy divide between Democrats and Republicans, but also the fractures within the GOP itself. Greene’s outspoken criticism of her own party’s leadership and Trump’s political team is unusual and signals a broader dissatisfaction among some rank-and-file Republicans about the party’s direction on health care. With the government shutdown stretching on and health care costs rising, the pressure is mounting for both sides to find common ground—or risk further political fallout as the 2026 elections approach.
For now, Americans watching from the sidelines are left with more questions than answers, as lawmakers debate, delay, and deflect while the stakes for health care access and affordability continue to climb.
