The latest version is being devised by centrist Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) in consultation with public-option opponents such as Snowe and Landrieu and with public-option supporters like Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Reid.
The dynamics of this stage of the conversations could be promising: Carper is acting as a go-between to centrists such as Sens. Snowe, Landrieu, Nelson and Lieberman, while Schumer is in constant contact with liberals like Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio).
Carper’s descriptions of his idea make it sound like it could be all things to all people.
He says his aim is to address criticisms from lawmakers like Lieberman and Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) that the public option is “government-run, government-funded” by putting an outside body in charge and creating a firewall between the program and the Treasury. But this public option would be a national entity, not a collection of state plans, which is a demand of liberals.
“The hammer,” as Carper calls it, shares traits with Snowe’s proposal to trigger a public option in states where private insurers do not meet established benchmarks for availability and affordability. It also jibes with Schumer’s “level-playing field” public option — the version already in the bill — because the plan must be financially self-sustaining. And the plan would be governed by a not-for-profit board, an idea similar to the healthcare cooperatives added to the bill by Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.). Read more at the Hill.
I think we're going to end up with a public option trigger. Meanwhile, the first amendment to healthcare bill passes:
In its first vote on health care overhaul, the Senate Thursday narrowly approved an amendment to safeguard coverage of mammograms and preventive screening tests for women under a revamped system.
The 61-39 vote on an amendment by Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, would allow the Health and Human Services secretary to require insurers to cover preventive health screenings free of charge. MSNBC
