The health care debate has been not only one of the most contentious issues in recent times, it has been one of the most confusing. A rather poorly written bill that passed in one committee has been scrutinized and left many people worried, angry, and/or confused. Yet the crux of much of this debate has been about a public option. Three of the major complaints about a public option have been the cost of starting a new government program particularly when the deficit is already so high; the doubts about whether people (particularly those who work at small companies and get employer based health insurance) will be pushed off their current plan and forced into a government-run insurance plan; and the concerns about what exactly will and won’t be covered under that public option.
Since the future of the public option is looking bleak, the idea of health insurance co-ops is re-emerging. It isn’t yet clear if that will be the next step in the health care debate, but they are worth taking a look at. Creating a pool of people, like small business owners, those who are self-employed, farmers, or others who aren’t in a position to obtain employer-based health insurance is potentially a very good way to increase access and reduce costs for those who have had a difficult time obtaining health insurance.
Yet there is a political obstacle. Unfortunately, a handful of prominent Democrats have stated that if the public option is not accepted then co-ops would essentially be used as a front for instituting a public option. These were unfortunate statements as there is already some opposition to co-ops building due to the belief that they will lead to government run health care. Yet in their purest form co-ops are exactly what they say they are, they are cooperatives between groups of people who are basically looking for the same thing – affordable health insurance.
Certainly don’t begrudge anyone their distrust in the government, it is a healthy logical American tradition. Yet hopefully people won’t put the cart before the horse when it comes to forming an opinion on insurance co-ops. If they are the next phase of the health care debate, it makes sense to take a careful look at how they will be structured. Hopefully they won’t automatically be opposed based on unwise political statements. If well-formed and well-implemented co-ops could be a rather unobtrusive low-cost solution to insuring more Americans. That leaves a significant ‘if’ out there as good concepts don’t always lead to solid legislation, but giving co-ops a chance makes sense.
Filed under: Independent, Moderate, Politics, democrats | Tagged: health care co-ops, health care coops, health co-ops, health coops, health insurance reform
[...] Certainly don’t begrudge anyone their distrust in the government, it is a healthy logical American tradition. Yet hopefully people won’t put the cart before the horse when it comes to forming an opinion on insurance co-ops. If they are the next phase of the health care debate, it makes sense to take a careful look at how they will be structured. Hopefully they won’t automatically be opposed based on unwise political statements. If well-formed and well-implemented co-ops could be a rather unobtrusive low-cost solution to insuring more Americans. That leaves a significant ‘if’ out there as good concepts don’t always lead to solid legislation, but giving co-ops a chance makes sense. Are Health Co-ops Coming and What Will They Mean? [...]
[...] care reform than the House. There is no government run health insurance or public plan. Likely the co-ops will be what receives the most scrutiny. It would have been nice to see tort reform included, and [...]