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October 24, 2009
End of Tunnel, Meet Light.
There are still about a thousand things that could go all haywire at this point, but the public option is beginning to feel very real:
Democratic leaders in the Senate and House have concluded that a government-run insurance plan is the cheapest way to expand health coverage, and they sought Friday to rally support for the idea, prospects for which have gone in a few short weeks from bleak to bright.The shift in momentum is so dramatic that many lawmakers now predict that President Obama will sign a final bill that includes some form of government-sponsored insurance for people who do not receive coverage through the workplace. Even Democrats with strong reservations about expanding government's role in the health-care system say they are reconsidering the approach in hopes of making low-cost plans broadly available.
I don't love the opt-out, and I don't love the fact that it'll take several years before everyone can choose the public option, but things are looking good right now for a system that can be expanded and shaped to more closely resemble single-payer.
And I write about my optimism with great caution.
Adding... Thanks AHIP!
Reid's original inclination was to leave the public option out of a final bill he is writing from measures passed by the finance and health committees. But his liberal colleagues began urging him two weeks ago to reconsider, after insurance industry forecasts that premiums would rise sharply under the Finance Committee bill, which lacked a public option. The report had the effect of prodding Democrats to look for better ways to control costs, and the public option -- strongly opposed by the insurance industry -- reemerged as a possible solution.Because a government-run plan would be dedicated to holding down costs and would lack a profit motive, congressional budget analysts predict that it could reduce the cost of expanding coverage to people who don't have it by as much as $100 billion over the next decade.
Filed under: Healthcare || Public Option
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Posted By Bob Cesca | October 24, 2009 1:28 PM
Comments
I'm with you on this Bob! I don't love the opt out but, if it's done the way Anthony Weiner suggests, every state would have to opt in first and allow the program to run for a certain amount of years. This is good because already, some Republican govenors and wanna be govenors have say they will opt out.
If they are forced to opt in first, their citizens will be able to use the system and will likely be in favor of keeping it.
When legislators try to removed it, they'll find the only thing that gets removed will be their asses from office. It's a perfect trap. We'll have them by the balls!
Posted by: roxsteady ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.bobcesca.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at October 24, 2009 1:47 PM
I think the opt out will work out just fine. How did denying stimulus money work out for these governors?
Especially if they have to opt out after having it. Have you seen what politicians do when we suggest taking away Medicare?
Posted by: cynicalgirl at October 24, 2009 5:16 PM
