PORTLAND — U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin is brushing off criticism he’s getting from some conservatives for not voting to repeal President Barack Obama’s health care law.

Poliquin was one of three Republicans in the House to vote this week against repealing the law. The freshman congressman says he opposes it but believes a replacement plan needs to be in place first.

After the vote, the National Board of the libertarian-leaning Republican Liberty Caucus voted Thursday to rescind its endorsement of the congressman. The chair of the caucus said the group was “stunned and disappointed” and no longer stands by him.

Poliquin said Friday that he’s not in Washington “to grandstand,” but to fix problems. He said the House has already voted to repeal the law several times without success.