American senators are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump'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 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 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 proposal, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on social media, and stood next to 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 response to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop public funds 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
Opposition senators shared concerned responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate adjourned without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the tax credits.
"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Partisan Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers suggested that the essence of such a plan would remove the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that failed to secure enough support in 2017.
