When will the Senate ACA tax credit bill be ready? Say it with me, everyone...

Monday, January 12th, 4:45am, via Jordain Carney of Politico:

[GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio] said his goal is to get roughly 35 of the Senate’s 53 GOP senators to support an eventual deal — not just a handful joining Democrats on a “defection vote” — and that he’s keeping the White House and Senate leaders closely apprised of the discussions.

...His involvement is also a sign that a new generation of bipartisan dealmakers might be starting to emerge after some of the Senate’s old hands headed for the exits in recent cycles. Moreno is now in close touch with not only Collins and Shaheen but other Senate pragmatists such as Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Angus King (I-Maine).

...The Senate group’s proposed extension would include new restrictions including a $5 a month minimum premium payment and an income cap set at 700 percent of the federal poverty level. In the second year, the proposal would also give enrollees to take their subsidy as cash in pre-funded health savings accounts — an arrangement favored by Trump.

I wrote a more in-depth analysis of the major points which are said to be included in the Senate compromise version last week.

Moreno believes the group is in the “red zone,” and could be ready with text as soon as Tuesday or Wednesday. But some Democrats involved in the discussions have been more circumspect, wary about a thorny dispute over abortion.

Many Republicans say they will not be able to support a compromise unless the subsidies are tightened so they cannot fund abortions in any manner. Democrats say the safeguards built into the Affordable Care Act upon its passage in 2010 are sufficient.

“I think we’ve made clear from the start, the Democrats feel we have to come to the rescue and I hope we can do it,” said Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 party leader. But he warned that if the Republicans “decide they want to make this an abortion issue, I’m afraid that’s the end of the conversation.”

...While the abortion question is a powerful force pulling some Republicans away from a deal, there are also compelling reasons for many to embrace a compromise — not least of which is the threat the expiring subsidies pose to the GOP majorities in November.

Monday, January 12th, 11:50am, via Sahil Kapur of NBC News:

On Air Force One last night, Trump floated a veto threat of the 3-year ACA funding bill.

Q: Mr. President, the House passed a 3-year extension of the ACA; it's in the Senate. If it passes the Senate would you veto it?

TRUMP: "I might, yeah. I might."

Tuesday, January 13th, via Brendan Pedersen & Laura Weiss of Punchbowl News:

Sen. MORENO tells reporters ACA negotiators are aiming to get a deal "before the end of the month" - a big delay

Some senators involved in talks had been talking about text this week

Moreno says one idea floated on Hyde Amendment is addressing it via penalties on insurers for noncompliance w/ the law. Hyde has been the obstacle to Senate deal

Tuesday, January 13th, via Benjamin Guggenheim of Politico:

Senators punt release of health package to end of January

The bipartisan Senate group working on a compromise deal to revive the lapsed Affordable Care Act subsidies won’t have legislative text ready until the last week of January, according to one of the lead negotiators — a dip in the cautious optimism some lawmakers have projected in recent days that a framework could come out as soon as this week.

...According to Moreno, Democrats and Republicans involved in the discussions have yet to come to a resolution on how to address the so-called Hyde Amendment, which mandates that federal funding cannot cover abortions. Under law, insurers on the Obamacare marketplace must segregate funds that go toward abortion services from funds that go to all other health services.

However, Republicans and Democrats disagree on whether that segregation complies with the Hyde Amendment in the first place. One option lawmakers are now considering as a compromise policy to ride alongside a revival of the enhanced Obamacare credits is increasing audits and penalties on insurance plans to yield stricter enforcement of how the funds are dispersed.

"The last week of January" would be around the 27th or so, otherwise known as...two weeks from today.