The Trump administration will continue to pay subsidies to health insurance companies under the Affordable Care Act, The Hill reports.
The White House told Democrats Wednesday the subsidies would be included in a spending bill that needs to get approved by both Houses of Congress and signed by President Donald Trump by midnight on Friday. Failure to do so would force a government shutdown.
Democratic leaders previously said they wouldn't budge on removing the subsidies from the bill.
The subsidies help low-income people pay for their out-of-pocket healthcare costs.
Initially, Trump demanded funding for a border wall to be included in the bill in exchange for Obamacare subsidy money, a deal immediately shot down by Democrats and one Trump took off the table Monday because of the opposition.
"The White House gambit to hold hostage healthcare for millions of Americans, in order to force American taxpayers to foot the bill for a wall that the president said would be paid for by Mexico is a complete nonstarter," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said last Friday. "If the administration would drop their eleventh-hour demand for a wall that Democrats, and a good number of Republicans, oppose, congressional leaders could quickly reach a deal."
Democrats want the offer in writing.
"He has flip-flopped on almost every single statement, every single sentence, every single tweet. Personally, I do not trust anything he says," Democratic Rep. Tony Cardenas said.
"I would like to see it in writing; I'd love to see it done through legislation."