American lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as GOP senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Federal Closure
The effect on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got under way, Republican senators welcomed a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by health savings accounts.
"My recommendation is to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to profit-driven 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 Support
Multiple Republican senators praised the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and displayed a giant blow-up 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 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 Reaction
Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the criticism of carriers 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."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in return for a future 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 restart the government and extend the payments for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before discussing the future of the tax credits.
"Inaction is irresponsible because people 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 fails to act."
Political Dynamics
None 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 reopen the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
