Ever since Theodore Roosevelt...

...proposed health care reform nearly a hundred years ago, the American people have been waiting for a Republican health care plan.

They're still waiting.

In today's Politico, Marin Cogan writes (my emphasis):

But talk to some of the 16 freshman [Republican] lawmakers who have declined their government health benefits, and you’ll hear a different side of the story — about tough out-of-pocket expenses, pre-existing conditions and support for health reforms that would help those who struggle with their coverage. As they venture into the free market for health insurance, these lawmakers — many of whom swept into office fueled by tea party anger over the health care law — are facing monthly premiums of $1,200 and fears of double-digit rate hikes.

The experience has caused some of them to think harder about the “replace” part of the “repeal and replace” mantra the GOP has adopted regarding the health care law.

“I have a niece who has pre-existing conditions, and I worry about her if she was ever to lose her job,” said Florida Rep. Richard Nugent (above), one of the freshman lawmakers who declined federal health insurance benefits.
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Nugent, a former sheriff, doesn’t receive federal employee benefits, choosing instead to purchase a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan for retired county employees, which he said costs about $1,200 a month for his family. Still, he said, his niece’s experience has contributed to his support for ending coverage bans on pre-existing conditions. “One of the key components with the ‘replace’ [bill] was to make sure we take care of people who have pre-existing conditions,” he said.
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One new Republican House member, Rep. Sean Duffy of Wisconsin, recently told a local TV program that he needed a commitment from GOP leaders that they’d offer their own health care proposals before he voted to repeal the Democrats’ bill.

“My position during the campaign and today is, let’s reform the reform or repeal and replace. And so, I wasn’t going vote for it,” Duffy said. “But I went and spoke to the leadership, and I got a commitment that we were going to bring forward our ideas on this replacement bill.”

And where exactly is that "replacement" bill? Oh, yeah. After talking about it for almost a hundred years, it still doesn't exist.