US lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as GOP senators floated a plan unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Federal Closure
The impact on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, airlines were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
President's Plan from Florida Resort
As weekend session got started, Republican senators embraced a suggestion 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.
"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 bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.
GOP Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator said.
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 wrote in reply to Trump's proposal. "We need to stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition lawmakers shared concerned reactions to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? Then I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an emerging proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a future vote on the ACA subsidies.
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 lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Several observers suggested that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that failed to secure enough backing in 2017.
