American senators are working through the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators floated a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Government Shutdown
The effect on Americans from the lengthiest closure of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Florida Resort
As Saturday's meeting got started, GOP senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style 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 bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote.
Republican Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on social media, 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 wrote in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition lawmakers expressed concerned responses to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is 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 ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging plan from a small group of moderate Democrats to terminate the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading 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 leading Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Political 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 legislators need the backing of several Democrats to reopen 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 patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that failed to secure enough backing in 2017.
