American senators are working through the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began over a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The effect on Americans from the longest closure of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, airlines were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Plan from Golf Course
As Saturday's session got under way, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on social media 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 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 posted.
Republican Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We're going to replace this failing program 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 spoke on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition lawmakers shared alarmed reactions to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an emerging proposal from a small group of moderate Democrats to terminate the shutdown in return for a later vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic senator continued in arguing that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because citizens will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Political Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the essence of such a plan would remove the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
