A bill that would allow insurance companies to sell policies, both to new and existing customers, that do not meet the minimum standards of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed the House of Representatives 261-157 Friday afternoon. Thirty-nine Democrats joined 222 Republicans in voting for the move.

The final tally is sure to sound some alarm in the Obama administration. The number of Democratic defections is the most visible sign of concerns in the party over the troubled implementation of the health care law, and of worries that it may become a cudgel used against vulnerable House Democrats facing re-election in 2014.
The Keep Your Health Plan Act of 2013, sponsored by Republican Fred Upton of Michigan, is not expected to be taken up by the Senate. The White House has already announced that President Barack Obama would veto the measure.

House Republicans have tried to defang the health care law on more than 40 occasions since it was passed in 2010, but this time, the caucus had momentum and a certain amount of political will on its side. Public outrage has been building over the fact that customers insured through the individual insurance market have been receiving notices from their insurers that their polices have been canceled for failing to meet the standards of Obamacare. During the legislative battle over its passage and the three years since, the president repeatedly assured Americans that if they liked their plans, they could keep them.

More: House Passes GOP Health Cover Fix, Aided by Democratic Rebels