American senators 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 end the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a plan toxic to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on US citizens from the longest closure of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, carriers were forced to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Golf Course
As Saturday's meeting got started, GOP senators welcomed a proposal made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"I am recommending 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 wrote.
Republican Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on social media, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Opposition Response
Opposition senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an developing plan from a handful of centrist lawmakers to terminate the shutdown in return for a later vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker persisted in arguing that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is 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 plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
