What is the deal that could end the government shutdown?

Senate Democrats are poised to help Republicans pass legislation that could help end the government shutdown. But the deal they are trying to reach does not directly address extending Affordable Care Act subsidies that expire at the end of the year, once a key demand of Democrats.

The Senate took a big step toward ending the government shutdown Sunday night, with eight Democrats in a narrow chamber voting in favor of a procedural motion that would pave the way for approval of the funding bill being negotiated.

Those eight Democrats who broke with party leadership were enough for the bill to reach the 60-vote threshold needed to overcome the filibuster. The provision would prevent Republicans, who hold a slim majority in the Senate, from reopening the government on their own.

The procedural vote breaks a nearly six-week impasse in which most Senate Democrats repeatedly rejected Republican-backed legislation that would temporarily restore government funding at current levels.

Democrats had called for the funding bill to include significant additional spending for health care protections and other important measures.

Most notably, he fought for a permanent extension of enhanced tax credits under the ACA, introduced during the Biden administration and set to expire at the end of the year. If these subsidies expire, millions of Americans could lose their health insurance or face significantly higher premiums.

Democrats also called for reversing some of the recent cuts to Medicaid and other health care programs. And it was aimed at addressing the Trump administration’s freezing of Congressional-authorized federal funds, which Democrats say is illegal.

The language of the funding agreement that drove Sunday’s breakthrough leaves many of those priorities unresolved. The 31-page bill makes no mention of expiring Obamacare tax credits.

Instead, the deal includes assurances from Republican leaders that the Democratic-authored health care bill will be voted on in the Senate by the second week of December.

“This is a big step because otherwise there is no way for the minority to get a bill to the Senate,” Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, said Sunday night after helping broker the deal.

Even if the tax credit extension bill passes the Senate, it would need to be taken up and passed by the Republican-led House of Representatives, then signed by President Donald Trump. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) has not committed to bringing such a bill to a floor vote.

The deal, currently moving through the Senate, also reportedly does not challenge President Trump’s ability to revoke funds appropriated by Congress.

But the bill includes a “minibus” that funds three of the 12 annual spending bills and would resume funding the rest of the government through Jan. 30.

The full-year funding will cover the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP or food stamps, a person familiar with the deal told NBC News. The Trump administration has said it cannot pay out the full amount of SNAP benefits during the government shutdown, and Democratic state leaders are suing.

The agreement would also reverse the Trump administration’s shutdown-related federal employee “retrenchments” and layoffs and ensure back pay for salaries missed during the shutdown.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York opposed the deal.

“This health crisis is so serious, so urgent, so devastating to families back home that I cannot in good faith support this (continuing resolution) that fails to address the health crisis,” he said Sunday.

Mistrustful Democrats had previously rejected Republican claims that negotiations on Obamacare subsidies could only take place once the government was reopened.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York also denounced the Senate deal and vowed to fight any issues in his chamber.

But King, who negotiated Sunday’s compromise with Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, argued there was no point continuing the painful shutdown in hopes of getting Republicans to cave in on health care.

“The question was, “Will a government shutdown further the goal of achieving the support needed to extend the tax credits?” We determined that such an outcome would not be possible. And the proof of that is almost seven weeks of futile attempts to make that happen,” he told reporters Sunday night.

The big change comes just days after Democratic candidates overwhelmed Republicans in the first election after President Trump returned to the White House.

Moreover, many polls show that more Americans blame Trump and the Republicans than Democrats for the government shutdown. The poll also shows that most Americans support Democrats’ initial main demand: extending health care subsidies.

But the stalemate drags on, with many government employees still being furloughed or required to work without pay, and major industries and key federal services increasingly hit hard.

Plane delays and cancellations are increasing at dozens of major airports across the country due to reductions in the number of air traffic controllers.

The political impact of Senate Democrats’ shutdown shift remains to be seen. Critics were quick to accuse Democratic defectors of relenting, despite supposedly holding strong positions on the government shutdown. But advocates of the move say it could benefit Democrats heading into next year’s midterm elections.

“With government reopening soon, Senate Republicans must finally come to the table, or Americans will undoubtedly remember who got in their way,” Shaheen said in a statement.

“If they don’t fix this problem, this is my prediction: They’re going to view last Tuesday’s election as a good night compared to next year’s election,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, said Monday morning.

— CNBC’s Emily Wilkins contributed to this report.