Former Sen. Rick Santorum said of Mitt Romney, "It's hard to see a path for him given the 'Obamacare' issue."

Welcome to The Hill's evening roundup of the day's health policy news and advance look at tomorrow's schedule.

Tuesday’s health news:

Cantor defends repeal plans: Incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Tuesday defended Republicans' decision to vote on healthcare reform repeal without paying for it or allowing Democratic amendments. Democrats have accused the GOP of eschewing campaign pledges to be more transparent and to reduce the deficit with the repeal vote, scheduled for next Wednesday.

The No. 2 House Republican said the public wants his party to hold a quick vote on repeal, and he promised a transparent process as committees propose ways to replace the reform law. Cantor also said the reform law’s projected deficit savings are the result of "budget gimmickry." http://bit.ly/fFstgd 

Dems weighing repeal: In the two days since incoming Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) predicted several Democrats would vote to repeal health reform, four House Dems who voted against the bill last Congress have told The Hill they will not support the repeal measure.

Democratic Reps. Stephen Lynch (Mass.) and Heath Shuler (N.C.) said Tuesday they would not vote to repeal the reform law. On Monday, Reps. Collin Peterson (Minn.) and Daniel Lipinski (Ill.) also said they would reject full repeal. http://bit.ly/i0tePX

As Republicans eye a vote next week to repeal the new healthcare reform law, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will unveil a detailed outline of national and state-by-state repercussions if repeal succeeds.

HHS will argue that repealing the law would deprive people of popular consumer protections and leave them at the mercy of insurance companies, according to department documents obtained by The Hill. The new HHS data comes as Democratic leaders are centering their defense of the reform law around its consumer protections.

“At a time when American residents will soon be finally free from worrying that affordable coverage will not be available to them and their families when they need it the most, repealing the Affordable Care Act would be devastating,” HHS said in a document detailing repeal's national impact. “American residents, providers, small businesses and other employers would be denied critical new benefits of the law, from protections against insurance industry abuses to new coverage options and millions of dollars in support so the United States can deliver quality, affordable health care options to all of its residents.”

According to the document, repeal would mean: more than 1.2 million young adults under 26 would lose insurance through parents’ health plans; more than 165 million individuals would be subjected to lifetime coverage limits; about 16 million could have their insurance dropped at any moment; 44 million seniors would be forced to pay a co-pay for preventive services; and other protections would be lost.

A separate 138-page HHS document breaks down the figures for each state.

Since lawmakers started returning to Washington on Monday, Democratic leaders have been touting the reform law’s consumer protections. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and top Senate Democrats warned Speaker-designate John Boehner (R-Ohio) that the upper chamber would block efforts to repeal the reform law. On Tuesday, outgoing-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said the reform law was necessary to fund the new consumer protections.

“If you’re going to have a patient’s bill of rights, you need comprehensive health care reform,” Pelosi said.

Republicans unveiled a two-page bill on Monday to repeal the reform law, as well as a resolution that instructs key committees to propose elements to replace the law.

Incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Tuesday defended Republicans' decision to vote on healthcare reform repeal without paying for it or allowing Democratic amendments.

Democrats have accused the GOP of violating its campaign pledges to be more transparent and cut the deficit with their first big vote of the new Congress, scheduled for next Wednesday.

In a press conference to lay out the GOP's agenda for the 112th Congress, Cantor defended his party's decision to quickly try to repeal the bill. Cantor did not directly respond to questions about whether Republicans would allow amendments to the repeal bill, but he said the party is working to fulfill the American public's expectations for a quick vote on repeal.

"Most people believe this healthcare bill was litigated through the election," he said.

Cantor added, however, that Democrats and the public would later be brought on board as Republican-controlled committees develop alternative policies with which to replace the Democrats' bill. A resolution, introduced Monday night, directs key committees to develop proposals to replace the reform law based on certain criteria.

Asked whether House Republicans would act like President Obama who once dismissed a Cantor tax cut proposal with the words "elections have consequences," Cantor told reporters that "we're not taking that attitude."

"We're going to be charging our committees to go about formulating a replacement of the kind of healthcare that people want ... and that process will be one of openness," he said.

Cantor also defended Republicans' proposal to vote on repeal without taking into account the $124 billion that the Congressional Budget Office says the bill would cut from the federal deficit. Democrats have been accusing the GOP of hypocrisy as a result and outgoing Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Tuesday morning that the reform law cannot be repealed without "causing very serious violence to the national deficit and debt."

Cantor responded by saying the projected savings were the result of "budget gimmickry" and the reform law would wind up costing more than predicted. That's partly because some of the law's taxes start early while the most costly benefits - subsidies for people to buy insurance - are put off until 2014.
 
"Everyone knows that beyond the 10-year window, this bill has the potential to bankrup the federal government and the states," Cantor said.

Republicans hope some Democrats will join their repeal effort and create pressure on the Democratic-controlled Senate to get on board.

An incoming Republican congressman who will reject congressional health benefits said Tuesday morning his decision will cause a “struggle” for him and his wife, who has a pre-existing condition.

Rep.-elect Joe Walsh (Ill.), who defeated a three-term Democrat on the support of the Tea Party, said last year that lawmakers don’t deserve health benefits. Walsh announced his decision as liberal groups challenged Republicans who campaigned on repealing the new healthcare reform law to reject government-provided insurance.

Walsh said he didn’t want to "burden" Americans with his health bills, and he will purchase insurance on the individual market. 

“My wife and I now are going to have to go through the struggles that a lot of Americans go through, trying to find insurance in the individual market and having to deal with problems of preexisting conditions,” he said on CNN. 

At least one Democrat who voted against the healthcare reform law will likely vote for repeal next week, according to a report.

Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.), one of 34 House Democrats who voted against the reform law, told Fox News he would likely vote for repeal.

“I have not read the language yet, but I am inclined to support the repeal,” Boren told Fox on Monday.

After months of promising a repeal vote, Republicans unveiled a two-page bill Monday night to undo the entire reform law. A procedural vote will take place Friday, and a full vote to repeal the bill will be held Jan. 12. 

Incoming Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) predicted last weekend that a "significant number of Democrats" would vote for the repeal measure.

Just 13 Democrats who voted against healthcare reform last Congress survived the mid-term elections. Two Demcratic “no” votes – Reps. Collin Peterson (Minn.) and Daniel Lipinski (Ill.) – told The Hill on Monday that they would vote against repealing the entire law.

"Mr. Peterson will vote to repeal parts of the bill but not all of it because he views that as a political vote," a Peterson spokeswoman said in an e-mail Monday.

However, the bill will run into opposition from a Democratic-controlled Senate and would surely be vetoed by President Obama. Leading Senate Democrats said Monday they would block any repeal effort that does not keep the reform law’s consumer protections in place. 

Julian Pecquet contributed.

The Republican Governors Association is preparing an organized effort to help governors around the country fight the reform law's implementation.

Welcome to The Hill's evening roundup of the day's health policy news and advance look at tomorrow's schedule.

Monday's health news:

Democrats who bucked party on healthcare reform won't vote for repeal: At least two Democrats who voted against their party's healthcare overhaul say they won't join Republicans' repeal effort, nixing the GOP's stated hope that a groundswell of support could tip the Senate's hand.

Reps. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.) told The Hill they won't vote 'yes' on the GOP's repeal vote, which is expected to come up before President Obama's State of the Union address. Only 13 of the 34 House Democrats who voted against healthcare reform were reelected in the mid-terms.

The news comes as incoming Energy and Commerce Chair Fred Upton (R-Mich.) predicted Sunday that many Democrats would join the repeal push, creating pressure on the Senate to pass it as well. http://bit.ly/hx7TLH

Repeal vote scheduled for Wednesday: That repeal vote has scheduled for next Wednesday, Jan. 12, incoming House majority leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), announced Monday. http://bit.ly/he6aqU

Senate Dems vow to block repeal efforts: In a letter to Speaker-designate John Boehner (R-Ohio), leading Senate Democrats vowed to block efforts to repeal the reform law, citing the law's numerous consumer protections. In particular, they pointed to the law's closing of the so-called doughnut hole for Medicare beneficiaries.

“This proposal deserves a chance to work," they said. "It is too important to be treated as collateral damage in a partisan mission to repeal health care.” http://bit.ly/el8vPJ