US lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began over a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Federal Closure
The effect on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, airlines were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Florida Resort
As weekend session got started, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by health savings 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 ineffective Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Opposition Response
Democratic lawmakers shared concerned responses to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the criticism of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? In that case 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 emerging proposal 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 "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the long-term of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is derelict because citizens will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," 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 address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that carriers cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and reiterated 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 backing in 2017.
