Not according to Senator Conrad from North Dakota. In this important article (I previously sent out a tweet), Democrats Nearing Consensus on Health Plan
I found this thought most interesting:
By contrast, some Senate Democrats are trying to limit the scope of any new government plan, in the hope they can persuade some Republicans to vote for their legislation.
Senator Kent Conrad, Democrat of North Dakota, suggested that the public plan might take the form of an insurance cooperative, owned and operated for the benefit of its members — individuals and businesses with fewer than 10 employees.
This proposal, floated as a compromise, seemed to intrigue Republicans who were familiar with cooperatives that market electric power, telephone service, milk, wheat and other commodities.
“The strength of this proposal is that it accomplishes much of what those who want a public option are calling for — that is, something to compete with private for-profit insurance companies,” Mr. Conrad said. “On the other hand, it meets the objections of many Republicans and some Democrats as well. The co-op is not government-controlled.”
This co-op idea has great merit. I like the proliferation of ideas and the goal of finding a middle ground. While I am ignorant of the details, I am clearly interested in learning more.
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As long as this version of the public option is not supported through taxpayer dollars, it will turn out to be a fair competitor against the private plans.
The public option, over time, may be our only option. We have no idea how much it will cost or who exactly will be stuck with the bill. While the system is currently diseased, I don’t regard a goverment takeover as the cure. http://www.MDWhistleblower.blogspot.com
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