That Pesky Public Option

By Laura Adelmann

The Democrats are again steamrolling their agenda through Congress. Whether the vote takes place this week or after the August recess, it is likely that the Democrats’ plan for healthcare reform will include a public option or government run insurance program intended to compete with private insurance. Underestimating the damage this public option can do would be a mistake.

Democrats argue that the public option is the only way to keep private insurers “honest.” They believe it would control costs by competing with private insurance. This public option would be based on at least the current Medicare provider network. Democrats actually contend that this would cut costs. In reality, the public option would reimburse doctors and hospitals at the same meager rate that Medicare doles out and the private insurers would bear the cost of that shortfall. They would have to raise premiums, pushing more people off private insurance and on to the public plan, until the public plan is all that’s left. Presto, single-payer healthcare without actually voting for single-payer healthcare.

Additionally, Obama continues to spout the dishonest assertion that if you are happy with your health insurance you can keep it. Our brave media, when given a press conference at which to question Obama on these details, instead chose to delve into Obama’s opinion on a local criminal investigation. This lie continues to go unchecked. The fact remains that the government will decide what minimum coverage you must have. If you have a low cost, high deductible policy that doesn’t include everything on the government’s wish list, you’ll be required to buy more coverage. If you oppose abortion, you still may be required to obtain a policy that covers the procedure. You no longer can decide for yourself what coverage is appropriate. And this is just the beginning of the government dictating policy to doctors and patients.

Obamacare will soon streak through the House like one of Barack’s proposed high speed rail trains. If you want to remain in control and make your own healthcare choices, Obamacare must fail. This doesn’t mean healthcare reform is dead, just the public option that threatens to damage more than it fixes.

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