US 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 end the impasse appeared to recede as GOP senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The impact on US citizens from the longest closure of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, airlines were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.
President's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got started, GOP senators welcomed a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by health savings 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 bad 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 welcomed the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in response to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition lawmakers expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the censure of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to terminate the closure in exchange for a later vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker persisted in arguing that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Dynamics
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some observers suggested that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough support in 2017.
