US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began more than a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The effect on US citizens from the lengthiest shutdown of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, carriers were forced to ground planes and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend meeting got under way, Republican senators embraced a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced by HSA-style 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.
Republican Support
Several Republican senators welcomed the proposal, which is similar to a alternative for Obamacare put forward in 2017.
"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator stated.
Another senator praised Trump's suggestion 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 reply to Trump's proposal. "We must stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in HSA-style accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Reaction
Opposition lawmakers expressed concerned responses to Trump's proposal.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."
Another senator responded to the criticism of insurance companies by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Seriously? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an openness to an emerging plan from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the closure in return for a later vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an proposal to restart the government and continue the payments for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before discussing the long-term of the tax credits.
"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That is what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Situation
None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of repealing and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts suggested that the essence of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his residence and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that was unsuccessful to garner enough support in 2017.
