American lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the impasse appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Deepening Consequences of Federal Closure
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest closure of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, carriers were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got started, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms 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 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.
Republican Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will 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 giant blow-up 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 suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Opposition Response
Democratic lawmakers expressed concerned reactions to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the censure of carriers by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate adjourned without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a small group of moderate Democrats to terminate the shutdown in exchange for a later vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the subsidies before discussing the future of the tax credits.
"Inaction is irresponsible because citizens will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of several Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the core of such a plan would remove the ACA's mandate that carriers cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to garner enough backing in 2017.
