US senators are working through the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to end the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a plan toxic to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The effect on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got under way, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by health savings 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.
GOP Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, 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 need to stop public funds 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."
Democratic Reaction
Democratic senators shared 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 eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in return for a future vote on the ACA payments.
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 continue the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the tax credits.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of repealing and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some observers indicated that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump returned to his residence and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.
