US senators are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but hopes for a cross-party deal on how to end the standoff appeared to diminish as GOP senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, airlines were compelled to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend session got under way, Republican senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media 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 profit-driven 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 posted.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator commended Trump's proposal on social media, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator posted in response to Trump's proposal. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Response
Democratic senators expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another senator reacted to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without finding a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing proposal from a small group of moderate Democrats to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the Obamacare payments.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an offer to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator continued in arguing that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," 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 lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Several analysts indicated that the essence of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that carriers cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
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 iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
