US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the standoff appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a plan unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, called Obamacare.
Growing Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on Americans from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for forty-two million Americans.
Trump's Plan from Golf Course
As weekend meeting got under way, Republican senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort 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 Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator said.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion on social media, and displayed a giant blow-up of Trump's post as he spoke on the Senate floor.
"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's suggestion. "We need to stop public funds 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."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition senators expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's plan.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator responded to the criticism of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Negotiations
The Senate adjourned without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an developing plan from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the shutdown in return for a future vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans rejected 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 12-month continuation of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because people will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator said in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress fails to act."
Political Situation
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of several Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several analysts suggested that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with pre-existing conditions.
After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and reiterated on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough support in 2017.
