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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   By any other name A government-sponsored “public option” for health care may be more attractive to skeptics if it goes by a different moniker, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Monday. The Democratic leader referred to the so-called public option as “the consumer option.” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., used the term “competitive option.” Both suggested new terminology might get them past any lingering doubts among the public — or consumers or competitors. Associated Press   Related Stories • Obama to visit hill as Dems hash out health reform 12/6/09 • Senate retains long-term care in reform plan 12/5/09 • Moderates seek greater health care cost controls 12/4/09 • AARP defends health reform plan 12/3/09 • Opposition delays first Senate votes on health care bill 12/2/09 • Women’s insurance amendment gets first Senate vote 12/1/09 » More HEALTH CARE REFORM stories >   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 Health reform bill will include ‘opt out,’ senator says Associated Press WASHINGTON — Health care legislation heading for the Senate floor will give millions of Americans the option of purchasing government-run insurance coverage, Majority Leader Harry Reid said Monday, adding that individual states would have the choice of opting out of the program. The Nevada Democrat’s announcement was cheered by liberal lawmakers, greeted less effusively by the White House and noted with a noncommittal response by Democratic moderates whose votes will be pivotal. Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine, the only Republican to vote with Democrats on health care so far this year, issued a statement saying she was “deeply disappointed” in the approach the Democratic leader had chosen. Reid said, “While the public option is not a silver bullet, I believe it’s an important way to ensure competition and to level the playing field for patients with the insurance industry.” He said a long-delayed Senate debate on overhauling the health care system would begin as soon as the Congressional Budget Office completes a mandatory assessment of the bill’s cost and effect on coverage. In deference to moderates, Reid also said he was including a provision for nonprofit co-ops to sell insurance in competition with private companies. Changes on the public option — and numerous other provisions in the measure — are possible during a debate expected to last for weeks. Officials said Reid had prepared several variations of key provisions so he could make adjustments in his bill at the last minute and still make sure he was within President Barack Obama’s target of a $900 billion price tag over a decade. Both the House and the Senate are struggling to complete work by year’s end on legislation extending coverage to millions who lack it, to ban insurance industry practices such as denying coverage because of pre-existing medical conditions and to slow the rise in medical costs nationally. As in the Senate, attempts to complete drafting a measure in the House have been delayed by internal Democratic divisions on the details of a government-run option. Differences in bills passed by the House and Senate would have to be reconciled before any legislation reached Obama’s desk. Some details of the government-run provision to be included in the Senate bill: Probably beginning in 2013, insurance purchasing “exchanges” would be open to people buying coverage on their own as well as small businesses. They could choose from private insurance plans, or from the government plan that probably would be cheaper because it wouldn’t need to turn a profit. This public plan would be in effect nationwide, but Reid’s proposal would allow states the opportunity, starting in 2014, to “opt out” of it. There are a number of proposals under consideration for how states could opt out. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., who came up with the idea in the first place, proposed requiring states to pass laws in order to exit the public plan. The public plan would get startup money from the government, but that would be paid back over time and the plan would be paid for by premiums from participants. Rates paid to providers would be negotiated by the government. READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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