U.S. House Freedom Caucus chair: Healthcare bill lacks votes to pass

Reuters
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) and other members of the House Freedom Caucus hold a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S. March 7, 2017. REUTERS/Eric Thayer

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of the U.S. House Freedom Caucus on Wednesday said there were still not enough votes to pass the Republican healthcare plan, but that he remained hopeful for potential changes to the bill following a meeting at the White House. U.S. Representative Mark Meadows, who leads the group of conservative lawmakers, said that Vice President Mike Pence discussed "a couple of options" to win votes from caucus members and that he hoped Republicans could reach a consensus on the proposed legislation to rollback Obamacare. (Reporting by David Morgan; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Chris Reese)