American lawmakers are working through the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Federal Closure
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest closure of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Florida Resort
As Saturday's meeting got under way, Republican senators embraced a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.
GOP Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in reply to Trump's proposal. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Reaction
Democratic senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate adjourned without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to terminate the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans rejected an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the long-term of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because people will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Political Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some observers suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
