House GOP leader says measure will exclude health reform funds

 WASHINGTON – Funding for President Barack Obama’s health care law will be stripped from legislation to keep the government running for the remainder of the fiscal year, a House GOP leader said Tuesday, setting up a showdown with Senate Democrats and the White House that could risk a government shutdown.

 Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., the majority leader, said he expected the spending bill the House intended to approve next week will be amended to prohibit funds for the health care overhaul, the signature achievement of the president and congressional Democrats. Such a bill is not likely to pass the Senate.

 Congress faces a March 4 deadline to pass a spending bill for the remainder of the fiscal year as the current legislation expires. Democrats in the Senate would be unlikely to go along with steep cuts to the president’s health care overhaul, forcing a standoff between the two chambers. To avoid a government shutdown, Congress could be forced to approve a short-term funding mechanism until the issue is resolved.

 The House GOP’s bill has not yet been released, but Republican leaders have said the spending package will cut 9 percent from 2010 levels for non-security discretionary accounts for the remaining seven months of this fiscal year.

 Specific cuts to prohibit the implementation of Obama’s health care reforms were not expected in the bill but would be offered during the amendment process, Cantor said.

Tribune Washington bureau