Introduction
The "public option" is part of the health care reform proposal for all uninsured Americans and those who want to change their plan. The public option is a health care plan ((managed by the federal government) that would compete with private health insurance companies, in order to lower the costs of policies and make health care affordable for millions of Americans.
Background
“Public option” refers to a proposal that Jacob Hacker came up with when was a graduate student at Berkeley. He proposed that Congress create a “Medicare-like” program that would sell health insurance to the nonelderly in competition with private health insurance companies.
Those without insurance or want to change it will have access to a "new insurance Exchange," that is, a new "marketplace" where insurers will offer their plans. This exchange is built on a competitive price system and will include the public option plan. A public option will offer coverage at a cost below that of private insurance plans because of lower administrative costs, bargaining leverage on prescription drugs and possibly lower reimbursements to doctors and hospitals. However, this is a controversial part of the health-care reform. Private insurers are opposed to a public plan, as are Republicans, who say it would be a government incursion into the free market. President Obama has assured that between private insurance and public insurance, there will be real competition, since the "public option" would be self-sufficient and will sustain itself exclusively on insurance premiums that it will be able to collect . The president also declared that no American citizen will be asked to leave their own health insurance and that the public option will be just one among other possible choices.
Senators Pro-Public Option
Senators signing the pro-public option letter included: Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Roland Burris (D-Ill.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), Ted Kaufman (D-Del.), Arlen Specter (D-Pa.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), John Kerry (D-Mass.), Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) and Paul Kirk (D-Mass.).
FDL [1] (Oct. 8, 2009)
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Myths & Facts about Public Option
Physicians for a National Health Plan
References
Fast Facts
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Relevant Fact 1
Health spending in 2009 is projected to account for 17.6% of GDP. .pdf
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Relevant Fact 2
As a share of GDP, health spending is projected to reach 18.4 percent by 2013, up from its 2003 level of 15.3 percent.
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Relevant Fact 3
A study by U.C. Berkeley found that a public option like Medicare could result in $1 trillion in national savings over ten years by driving down costs, improving efficiencies and fostering innovation.
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Relevant Fact 4
The "public plan" option would seek to give American consumers another choice if they can't find affordable, quality coverage in the private insurance market.
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Relevant Fact 5
Health care reform will NOT give the government the power to make life-and-death decisions for anyone regardless of their age. Those decisions will be made by individuals, their doctor and their family.
