The public option – that is, a federally administered health insurance plan – is gaining steam in the Democratic-controlled Congress. Last week, the Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), chair of Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions,
released a letter seeking public comment on the proposal.
The committees seek answers to questions such as who should be covered, how should prices for care be determined, and what sort of premium assistance should the federal government offer?
The American Hospital Association has consistently opposed a public option plan to lower the national uninsured rate, favoring expansion of already existing subsidized coverage through Medicaid, employer plans, and the marketplace. In a statement last week, the AHA wrote, “This type of proposal would strip significant resources from providers by relying on inadequate reimbursement rates, increasing the risk of hospital closures and threatening access to care for patients and communities.”