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US lawmakers are meeting during the weekend for the first time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to end the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators proposed a plan toxic to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Growing Consequences of Government Shutdown

The effect on US citizens from the longest shutdown of the federal government in history deepened on Saturday, as federal workers went without pay, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for 42 million Americans.

President's Plan from Golf Course

As weekend session got started, Republican senators embraced a suggestion 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.

"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 posted.

GOP Support

Several Republican senators praised the plan, which is comparable with 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 suggestion on online platforms, and stood next to 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 response to Trump's suggestion. "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 medical coverage they want."

Opposition Response

Opposition lawmakers shared alarmed responses to Trump's proposal.

"Essentially, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is another calculated attempt to eliminate Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "This is the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been rejected by voters and Congress."

Another senator reacted to the censure of insurance companies by posting: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans dislike how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I applaud your support for universal healthcare."

Continuing Talks

The Senate went into recess without reaching a resolution, but Senate Republican leaders have signaled an willingness to an developing plan from a small group of centrist lawmakers to terminate the closure 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 rejected an offer to reopen the government and continue the payments for a year.

Another leading Democratic senator persisted in arguing that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.

"Inaction is derelict because citizens will go bankrupt, people will become uninsured, people will get more ill," the senator said in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress does nothing."

Political Situation

None of the Republican senators seemed to address the fact that consumers would still need to buy coverage from the same insurance companies, or that Republican lawmakers need the support of eight Democrats to restart the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is unlikely to earn a solitary Democratic vote.

Some analysts suggested that the essence of such a plan would eliminate the ACA's requirement that insurance companies cover patients with existing health issues.

After his golf outing, Trump went back to his residence and doubled down on his insistence that Republicans stop seeking compromise and try instead to eliminate and overhaul Obamacare with a version of the plan that was unsuccessful to secure enough backing in 2017.