US lawmakers are working through the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal toxic to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on Americans from the lengthiest closure 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 Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators embraced 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 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 wrote.
Republican Support
Multiple Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and displayed a large print 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 must stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Response
Opposition lawmakers shared concerned reactions to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Talks
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an emerging plan from a handful of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.
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 subsidies for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker persisted in arguing that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is derelict because people will go into debt, people will become uninsured, 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 patients would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough support in 2017.
