US lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to end the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got under way, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of 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 wrote.
Republican Support
Several Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal 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 proposal. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Response
Opposition lawmakers shared alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in return for a later vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require 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 payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because citizens will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Dynamics
None of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that patients would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican legislators need the backing of several Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers indicated that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his residence and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough support in 2017.
