US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on Americans from the longest shutdown of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were forced to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got under way, Republican senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be substituted by health savings 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 ineffective Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.
GOP Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to 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 stood next to a large print 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 suggestion. "We need to stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Response
Democratic lawmakers expressed alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing plan from a small group of moderate Democrats 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 "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator said 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 plans from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the support of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some observers indicated that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
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 overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
