WASHINGTON (CNN) - A week after postponing a vote on a budget-cutting package, House Republicans eked out a narrow 217-215 win early Friday, passing a bill to trim about $50 billion from the deficit over the next five years.

The deficit-reduction plan cuts spending across a wide range of government programs. The hard-fought win was not official until about 1:45 a.m. ET. Last week, House Republicans abruptly canceled their first attempt to vote on the package after admitting they didn't have enough votes to pass it.

Fourteen Republicans joined 201 Democrats in voting against the bill.

Passage was an important victory for the GOP leadership, and came on the heels of a surprising setback Thursday afternoon on another key spending bill.

Twenty-two Republicans joined House Democrats to defeat a $142 billion bill that funds many of the nation's health and social services programs. It was the first time a spending bill went down to defeat on the House floor in a decade, according to House sources.

After the failed vote, House Republican leaders recessed the body for more than five hours. Leaders met behind closed doors to discuss concerns from several wavering moderate Republicans on the budget-cutting measure.

When debate on the deficit-reduction package started after 8 p.m., GOP leaders agreed to several small changes, including reducing cuts to food stamps and adjusting eligibility rules for Medicaid. Democrats argued that the changes would have little effect in the long run.

In other modifications, Republican leaders last week dropped a provision that would have allowed oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). The concession was a disappointment to President Bush, who has been urging Congress to develop more domestic energy sources.

The package left many Republicans torn.

Rep. Steve LaTourette, R-Ohio, first voted against the bill, but then was persuaded by GOP leaders to flip his stance. LaTourette said Republican leadership argued they needed a win on the budget to govern. "As lousy as I thought this product was, I thought it was my responsibility," LaTourette said.

Debate on the House floor was heated. Democrats called the Republican budget plan "anti-family." Republicans repeatedly asked Democrats to present their own alternative and accused them of waiting in the wings to raise taxes.

The Senate passed a $35 billion spending cut bill earlier this month. The Senate bill includes a provision to drill in ANWR even though it is absent in the House version. Many expect it to be added to a final budget-cut bill when the House and Senate meet in conference committee.

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Democrats had proposed a huge tax on oil company profits -- read more here.

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