Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Republican members of the new 112th Congress, which convenes Wednesday, have put a total repeal of President Obama’s health care reform bill at the top of their agenda.

House Republicans, led by House Speaker-elect John Boehner (R-OH), will hold a majority in the House. They say that if they cannot successfully repeal the entire reform bill, they will take it apart and vote on each provision piecemeal. Rep. Michele Bachman (R-MN), who launched an appeal of the law the day before it was signed, says the legislation has hurt job creation and has already increased insurance premiums.

House Republicans say they expect to vote on the matter prior to Obama’s State of the Union speech later in January, The New York Times reported.

A repeal of the law would do away with the CLASS Act as well as the provision that forbids insurers to deny coverage to individuals with pre-existing conditions. A repeal would also remove help to senior citizens in paying for their prescription drugs. Democrats, who still hold a slim majority in the Senate and in the White House, have promised to defend the law against all repeal attempts, the newspaper reported.