American senators are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to end the impasse appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating 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 deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
President's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got under way, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by health savings accounts.
"My recommendation is 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 wrote.
Republican Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in response to Trump's proposal. "We need to 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.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of insurance companies by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an emerging plan from a handful of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a future vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another way ahead" after Republicans rejected an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator persisted in arguing that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Several observers indicated that the essence of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that failed to secure enough backing in 2017.
