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US lawmakers are working through the weekend for the initial time since the federal closure began more than a month ago, but expectations for a bipartisan agreement on how to resolve the impasse appeared to diminish as Republican senators floated a proposal unacceptable to Democrats: scrapping the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Deepening Consequences of Federal Closure

The impact on Americans from the lengthiest shutdown of the US government in history deepened on Saturday, as government employees went unpaid, carriers were compelled to cancel flights and SNAP benefits have been postponed for forty-two million Americans.

Trump's Plan from Golf Course

As Saturday's meeting got started, GOP senators embraced a suggestion made on social media early Saturday by Donald Trump from his golf course in West Palm Beach, for subsidies to be substituted by health savings 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 bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE," Trump posted.

Republican Endorsement

Several Republican senators welcomed the plan, which is comparable with a replacement for Obamacare put forward in 2017.

"We will replace this broken system with something that is actually better for the patient," one senator said.

Another senator praised Trump's proposal on online platforms, and stood next to a large print of Trump's post as he addressed on the Senate floor.

"I'm writing the bill right now," a third senator posted in reply to Trump's proposal. "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 medical coverage they want."

Democratic Response

Opposition senators shared alarmed responses to Trump's plan.

"In other words, Donald Trump's 'proposal' for health care is yet another cynical attempt to repeal Obamacare," one Democratic senator commented. "It's the same unsuccessful Republican plan that's been defeated by the public and Congress."

Another lawmaker responded to the criticism of carriers by writing: "Oh, Trump and the Republicans can't stand how the big, bad insurance companies are overcharging Americans. Really? In that case I welcome your support for Medicare for All."

Ongoing Talks

The Senate adjourned 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 shutdown in return for a future vote on the Obamacare payments.

One Democratic senator, who is spearheading the talks among moderates, said that Democrats "need another path forward" after Republicans turned down an proposal to reopen the government and extend the payments for a year.

Another senior Democratic lawmaker persisted in maintaining that Republicans should agree to a one-year extension of the payments before negotiating the future of the subsidies.

"Doing nothing is derelict because people will go into debt, people will become uninsured, people will get sicker," the senator stated in a Senate address. "That's what will happen if this Congress fails to act."

Political Dynamics

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 backing of eight Democrats to reopen the government, and the idea of eliminating and replacing Obamacare with HSAs is improbable to earn a single Democratic vote.

Some analysts suggested that the core of such a proposal would eliminate the ACA's requirement that carriers cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.

After his golf outing, Trump went back to his private club and doubled down on his demand that Republicans stop seeking agreement and try instead to repeal and replace Obamacare with a version of the plan that failed to secure enough backing in 2017.