🔗 Share this article Senate Republicans Embrace Trump's Proposal to Overhaul Affordable Care Act US senators are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began over a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the standoff appeared to recede as Republican senators proposed a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: eliminating the ACA, called Obamacare. Growing Impact of Government Shutdown The impact on US citizens from the lengthiest closure of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went without pay, carriers were forced to cancel flights and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans. President's Plan from Golf Course As weekend meeting got under way, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his resort in West Palm Beach, for subsidies 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 bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump wrote. GOP Support Multiple Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with a alternative for Obamacare proposed in 2017. "We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the consumer," one senator stated. Another senator commended Trump's proposal on social media, and stood next to a large print 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 need to stop taxpayer money from going to insurance companies and instead give it directly to Americans in health savings accounts and let them buy the medical coverage they want." Opposition Reaction Democratic lawmakers shared alarmed reactions to Trump's plan. "Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator stated. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by voters and Congress." Another senator responded to the criticism of carriers by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the large insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? Then I welcome your support for Medicare for All." Continuing Talks The Senate adjourned without finding a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an emerging plan from a handful of moderate Democrats to end the shutdown in return for a future vote on the ACA payments. One Democratic senator, who is leading the negotiations among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to restart the government and continue the subsidies for a year. Another senior Democratic senator persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before discussing the long-term of the subsidies. "Doing nothing is derelict because people will go into debt, people will lose insurance, people will get sicker," the senator said in a floor speech. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing." Partisan Situation None of the Republican senators seemed to grapple with the fact that consumers would still need to buy plans from the same carriers, or that Republican legislators need the support of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of repealing and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote. Several analysts indicated that the essence of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues. After his golf outing, Trump returned to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a iteration of the plan that was unsuccessful to garner enough backing in 2017.