US lawmakers are working through the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the impasse appeared to recede as GOP senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, airlines were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced by health savings accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking 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.
GOP Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this failing program with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in reply to Trump's proposal. "We need to stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Response
Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed reactions to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an emerging plan from a small group of moderate Democrats to terminate the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the long-term of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers indicated that the essence of such a plan would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
