American senators are working through the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as GOP senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on Americans from the longest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by health savings accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven 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.
Republican Support
Multiple Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on social media, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed 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 taxpayer money 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."
Democratic Reaction
Democratic senators shared concerned reactions to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the criticism of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator continued in arguing that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political 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 eliminating and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers suggested that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the proposal that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
