Congressional GOP Back President's Call to Replace Affordable Care Act
US lawmakers 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 end the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal toxic to Democrats: eliminating the Affordable Care Act, called Obamacare.
Growing Consequences of Government Shutdown
The effect on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the US government in history worsened on Saturday, as federal workers went unpaid, airlines were forced to ground planes and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been delayed for 42 million Americans.
Trump's Proposal from Florida Resort
As Saturday's meeting got started, Republican senators embraced a suggestion made on online platforms early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for government payments to be substituted by health savings accounts.
"I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote.
Republican Endorsement
Multiple Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare proposed in 2017.
"We're going to replace this failing program with something that is truly better for the patient," one senator stated.
Another senator commended Trump's suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.
"I am drafting the bill right now," a third senator wrote in response to Trump's proposal. "We need to stop public funds from going to carriers and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the health care they want."
Opposition Reaction
Democratic lawmakers expressed alarmed reactions to Trump's proposal.
"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'concept of a plan' for health care is yet another calculated attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same failed Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."
Another senator responded to the censure of carriers by posting: "Well, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are ripping-off Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for Medicare for All."
Ongoing Talks
The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have indicated an openness to an emerging plan from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the closure in exchange for a future vote on the Obamacare subsidies.
One Democratic senator, who is leading the talks among centrists, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to restart the government and extend the subsidies for a year.
Another senior Democratic lawmaker continued in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before discussing the future of the subsidies.
"Inaction is irresponsible because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator said 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 consumers 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 eliminating and substituting Obamacare with savings accounts is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.
Some analysts indicated that the core of such a proposal would remove the ACA's requirement that carriers cover individuals with existing health issues.
After his resort visit, Trump returned to his private club and reiterated on his demand that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that failed to garner enough support in 2017.