"The public option is a significant issue, but its place in the debate is completely out of proportion to its actual importance to consumers," said Drew Altman, president of the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation. "It has sucked all the oxygen out of the room and diverted attention from bread-and-butter consumer issues, such as affordable coverage and comprehensive benefits."But insurers still don't like it. Guess why? And they're right. You'll hear a lot of progressive criticism that this whole reform package is nothing compared to what it could be. Damned right. And will be.
I, personally, am glad Obama is an incrementalist. Is he going to make mistakes? He didn't promise us a rose garden.
While a government plan might start out modestly, insurers fear that Congress could change the rules later, opening it up to all people and setting take-it-or-leave payments for hospitals and medical providers, instead of negotiating, as the House bill calls for.
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