US 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 impasse appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The effect on Americans from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, airlines were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators embraced a proposal 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 Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to 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 praised Trump's suggestion 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 reply 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 medical coverage they want."
Democratic Response
Opposition senators shared concerned reactions to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another cynical 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 senator reacted to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? Then I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an developing proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an proposal to restart the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator said in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
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 insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the essence of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
