American senators are working through the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to end the impasse appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, airlines were forced to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
President's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend session got started, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced 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 wrote.
Republican Endorsement
Several Republican senators welcomed the plan, 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 social media, and displayed a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Democratic Reaction
Democratic lawmakers expressed concerned responses to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of insurance companies by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Continuing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an developing proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in exchange for a future vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"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."
Political Dynamics
Not one 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 eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the essence of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a version of the proposal that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
