WASHINGTON, July 27 (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan assured five Republican senators on Thursday that if a healthcare bill passes the Senate, he will take it to a conference committee rather than have the House vote on it, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters.

Graham, who had vowed to oppose a "skinny" Obamacare repeal bill unless assured by Ryan, said the House speaker told lawmakers that he did not see such legislation as good policy. Asked if he would now vote "yes" on such a bill, Graham said: "Yes. Based on what I heard, I am."

(Reporting by Yasmeen Abutaleb; Editing by Leslie Adler)