US lawmakers are meeting during 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 GOP senators proposed a proposal toxic to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.
President's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got started, Republican senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by HSA-style 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.
GOP Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on social media, and stood next to a giant blow-up 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 suggestion. "We need to stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it straight to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want."
Opposition Reaction
Opposition lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another lawmaker reacted to the criticism of insurance companies by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an emerging proposal from a small group of centrist lawmakers to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another way ahead" after Republicans turned down an proposal to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another leading Democratic lawmaker continued in arguing that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the long-term of the tax credits.
"Doing nothing is irresponsible because citizens will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers indicated that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to repeal and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to garner enough backing in 2017.
