US senators are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the impasse appeared to recede as GOP senators floated a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Deepening Consequences of Federal Closure
The effect on US citizens from the longest closure of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend session got started, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"I am recommending 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.
GOP Support
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement 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 commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and displayed 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 proposal. "We need to stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Response
Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate went into recess without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing plan from a small group of moderate Democrats to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and continue the payments for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker continued in arguing that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is derelict because citizens will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the essence of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
