Hospital stocks rallied Friday afternoon on news that Sen. John McCain would vote no on the Graham-Cassidy bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, putting the legislation in jeopardy.
After following market indexes sideways most of Friday, the shares of HCA, Tenet Healthcare, Community Health Systems and LifePoint Health sparked to life on McCain's pivotal decision.
His vote is viewed as crucial to the GOP gaining the 50 votes needed for passage of the legislation out of the Senate.
In the 40 minutes after the news hit Wall Street at 1:50 p.m. ET, shares of Tenet rose to $16.46 from $15.74 . By 3 p.m. it was ahead 3% on the day, while the broader market remained close to flat.
HCA saw a similar spike. Its shares at 3 p.m. were ahead 96 cents, or 1%, to $78.61.
LifePoint's shares were up 95 cents, or 2%, to $57.05. UHS's shares were up about 1% as were those of CHS.
Hospitals are concerned that Graham-Cassidy will result in more uninsured and cuts to Medicaid spending as it seeks to move ObamaCare's $1.2 trillion in annual spending to a state block grant program.
