American lawmakers are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to end the impasse appeared to recede as Republican senators floated a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Federal Closure
The impact on Americans from the lengthiest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Proposal from Florida Resort
As Saturday's meeting got under way, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by health savings accounts.
"I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven Insurance Companies in order to save the ineffective Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on social media, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Response
Democratic senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the shutdown in return for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before negotiating the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator said in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his residence and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that failed to secure enough support in 2017.
