American senators are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to end the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on US citizens from the longest closure of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, airlines were compelled to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Florida Resort
As Saturday's meeting got under way, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on social media 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 Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking 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 Support
Multiple Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's proposal on online platforms, and displayed a large print 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 proposal. "We must stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Response
Opposition senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the censure of carriers by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? Then I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the shutdown in return for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before negotiating the long-term of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get more ill," the senator said in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Political Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that patients would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican legislators need the backing of several Democrats to reopen the government, and the concept of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the core of such a plan would remove the ACA's requirement that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a version of the plan that failed to secure enough support in 2017.
