🔗 Share this article

US lawmakers are working through the weekend for the initial time since the government shutdown began over a month ago, but expectations for a cross-party deal on how to resolve the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a plan unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare.

Deepening Consequences of Federal Closure

The impact on Americans from the longest closure of the federal government in history worsened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, airlines were forced to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.

Trump's Proposal from Florida Resort

As weekend session got under way, GOP senators welcomed a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be replaced by health savings accounts.

"I am recommending 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 wrote.

GOP Endorsement

Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is similar to a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.

"We will replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the consumer," one senator stated.

Another senator commended Trump's proposal on social media, and stood next to 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 response 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."

Opposition Reaction

Opposition lawmakers expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's plan.

"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "It's the same failed Republican plan that's been rejected by the public and Congress."

Another lawmaker responded to the censure of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for universal healthcare."

Ongoing Negotiations

The Senate went into recess without reaching a solution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging proposal from a handful 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 centrists, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans rejected an offer to restart the government and continue the payments for a year.

Another senior Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a 12-month continuation of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.

"Doing nothing is irresponsible because citizens will go bankrupt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."

Political Dynamics

None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that patients would still need to buy plans from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of several Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a single Democratic vote.

Several analysts suggested that the core of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's mandate that carriers cover patients with pre-existing conditions.

After his resort visit, Trump returned to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough backing in 2017.