American senators are meeting during the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators floated a plan unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Federal Closure
The effect on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program 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 subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"My recommendation is 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 posted.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to 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 wrote in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition 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 eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? In that case I welcome your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate adjourned without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an developing plan from a small group of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the ACA payments.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "require another way ahead" after Republicans rejected an proposal to reopen the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because people will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Dynamics
Not one 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 support of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the essence of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover patients with existing health issues.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the proposal that was unsuccessful to secure enough support in 2017.
