A Colorado lawmaker and several colleagues are asking Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to hold a vote on the idea of offering some consumers access to a government-run health plan option.
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., has written a letter urging Reid, D-Nev., to bring a public option health plan proposal to a vote before the full Senate using budget reconciliation rules.
"Put simply, including a strong public option is one of the best, most fiscally responsible ways to reform our health insurance system," Bennet writes in the letter.
Analysts at the Congressional Budget Office have suggested that creating a public option plan could save at least $25 billion over 10 years, Bennet writes.
Offering a public option plan could offer American consumers a low-cost alternative to private insurance and force private insurers to be more competitive, Bennet writes.
Some experts on Senate rules say passing a bill using the budget reconciliation process could be complicated, but Bennet notes that the Senate already has used the process for passing the bills that created the Children's Health Insurance Program, the Medicare Advantage program and the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act health benefits continuation program.
Surveys show that 59% of all Americans – and even 33% of Republicans – support the idea of having a public option, Bennet writes.
At press time, 8 other Democrats had announced their support for Bennet's initiatives.
The senators who have announced their support are Roland Burris, D-Ill.; Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio; Al Franken, D-Minn.; Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.; John Kerry, D-Mass; Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.; Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.
Current Senate rules normally require supporters of a bill to have 60 votes lined up before they can get the bill to the Senate floor without facing the threat of a filibuster.
The Senate also can consider legislation using special budget reconciliation rules, and that process may require only that backers have the support of a simple majority.
Congressional Democrats have been having trouble getting enough support for their own health bills to be certain about their ability to round up 60 votes in the Senate.
Scott Brown, a Republican, made Democratic leaders' job even more difficult, by winning a Senate seat once held by Edward Kennedy and eliminating the theoretical possibility that Democrats could build a 60-vote majority solely with Democrats and independents.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.