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 floated a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the ACA, known as Obamacare.
Deepening Impact of Government Shutdown
The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, airlines were forced to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Golf Course
As Saturday's session got under way, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be replaced by HSA-style accounts.
"I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the 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 welcomed the proposal, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare put forward 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 proposal on online platforms, and displayed 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 reply to Trump's proposal. "We must stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it straight to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Democratic Reaction
Democratic senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another lawmaker responded to the criticism of carriers by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the large insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? Then I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful of centrist lawmakers to end the shutdown in return for a future vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the negotiations among centrists, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker continued in arguing that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the subsidies before discussing the long-term of the subsidies.
"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."
Partisan Dynamics
Not one of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the concept of eliminating and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a solitary Democratic vote.
Several observers suggested that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's mandate that insurance companies cover individuals with existing health issues.
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 eliminate and replace Obamacare with a version of the plan that failed to garner enough support in 2017.
