US senators are meeting during 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 GOP senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
President's Proposal from Golf Course
As Saturday's session got under way, GOP senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be substituted by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven 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.
Republican Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We must 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 Reaction
Opposition lawmakers expressed 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 commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an developing plan from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in return for a later vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans rejected an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Dynamics
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the essence of such a plan would remove the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
