American lawmakers are working through the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as GOP senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators welcomed 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 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.
Republican Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's proposal. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Reaction
Democratic lawmakers expressed concerned responses to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful 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 large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in return for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker continued in arguing that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican legislators need the backing of several Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the essence of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
