American senators are working through the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Consequences of Government Shutdown
The effect on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, airlines were forced to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Golf Course
As Saturday's 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 subsidies to be substituted by health savings 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 ineffective Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.
GOP Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator posted in response to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Reaction
Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an developing plan from a small group of moderate Democrats to terminate the shutdown in exchange for a future vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks 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 senior Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Situation
None 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 backing of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
