American lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but hopes for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the standoff appeared to diminish as GOP senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Federal Closure
The impact on Americans from the longest closure of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were compelled to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
President's Proposal from Florida Resort
As weekend session got under way, GOP senators embraced a proposal made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted 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 wrote.
GOP Endorsement
Several Republican senators praised the proposal, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this broken system with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator said.
Another senator commended 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'm writing the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response 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 health care they want."
Democratic Reaction
Opposition senators expressed concerned reactions to Trump's plan.
"In other words, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is another cynical attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."
Another senator responded to the criticism of insurance companies by writing: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Seriously? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."
Continuing Talks
The Senate adjourned without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an developing proposal from a small group of moderate Democrats to end the closure in return for a later vote on the ACA subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "require another path forward" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should accept a 12-month continuation of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.
"Doing nothing is derelict because people will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator said in a Senate address. "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 plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the backing of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and substituting Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.
Several observers indicated that the essence of such a proposal would remove the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.
After his resort visit, Trump went back to his private club and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the proposal that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.
