American lawmakers are working through the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as GOP senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Federal Closure
The impact on Americans from the longest shutdown of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, carriers were forced to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Golf Course
As weekend session 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 health savings accounts.
"I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of 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 wrote.
GOP Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this failing program with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's proposal. "We must stop public funds from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight 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 plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' 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 responded to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the closure in return for a future vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because citizens will go bankrupt, 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."
Partisan Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, 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 unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested 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 reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
