CNN

[...] course now the Dems are coming back and saying that comprehensive health care reform is not possible without the public option. Nothing [...]

[...] that the public option might be a deal breaker for at least some House Democrats.” “It would be very, very difficult” to support a bill without the public option, said [...]

[...] Democrats give this up.  Just today, Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) said that dropping the public option might be a deal breaker.  So I’m not quite ready to do a happy dance.  On the other hand, he points out that [...]

[...] public option might be a deal breaker for at least some House Democrats." "It would be very, very difficult" to support a bill without the public option, said Johnson. In meetings at the White House [...]

[...] public option might be a deal breaker for at least some House Democrats." "It would be very, very difficult" to support a bill without the public option, said [...]

[...] it's like watching the Keystone Cops.  One Texas democorp says a healthscare bill 'without a public option would be very, very difficult' to pass. Republicorp Dick Armey  "predicted that supporters of reform would attempt [...]

[...] said that the public option is essentially off the table, something that I'm not buying BTW, the progressives are throwing a hissy fit: On the same day that a Cabinet member signaled the administration’s willingness to forego [...]

[...] said that the public option is essentially off the table, something that I'm not buying BTW, the progressives are throwing a hissy fit: On the same day that a Cabinet member signaled the administration’s willingness to forego [...]

[...] least some are holding firm but will they succeed? TX Dem: Bill without public option 'would be very, very difficult' On the same day that a Cabinet member signaled the administration’s willingness to forego [...]

[...] Online Store var addthis_pub="otero1"; Bill without public option 'would be very, very difficult' (CNN) [...]

[...] that the absence of the public option could be a deal breaker for the House Democratic Caucus. CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive – TX Dem: Bill without public option &... If Democrats won't support a bill unless it includes a public option and Republicans will oppose [...]

[...] Follow this link: CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive – TX ... [...]

[...] CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive – TX ... By CNN Associate Producer Martina Stewart I have the solution to helath care reform allow the private insurance companies to continue charging huge premiums and have the government pay out all claims. This way those poor executives could continue their thankless task of ... CNN Political Ticker – http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/ [...]

[...] More here: CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive – TX ... [...]

Without a public option, there is no reform. There is simply no point in passing legislation at all if there is no public option because those who cannot afford insurance now, will still not be able to afford health care. Co-ops won't provide affordable care. They will offer a slightly lower cost that most of the uninsured will not be able to purchase. A public option, based on income, is the only way to cover them. They are the ones who are costing us a fortune in emergency health care costs – that and the Bush policy of banning negotiations for lower prices for meds and services.

Congress man Johnson is out of touch with the average voter who is dead set against a public option. Shame on you congressman!

I think all students deserves public health care. It might be a little easier for a working person to purchase a health insurance than a part time or full time students. Students face numerous problems including expensive tuition.

Rep. Price needs to read the CBO report that clearly states the public option would not "crowd out" the system and predicts more Americans in private insurance, even with reasonable competition from a public option.

Americans need real health care reforms this time to fix our broken system that currently denies coverage and causes most bankruptcies. That is no longer morally acceptable in our country.

The status quo has got to go...Reforms Now.

why not
Create a public option that only individuals can purchase. Give people a choice, they can pick their employee offered insurance or the employer can pay the employee the money the employer would have spent on the employees health care plan. That way, employers can't join the public plan so they won't be able to force employees on to it. And IF an individual or family wants to CHOOSE the pubic option over the employer sponsored option they get the same dollar benefit that all other employees get.

Someone needs to explain to me how a program that will insure 15% of the american population– a percentage that currently does not have health insurance– endangers the insurance coverage of the other 85%. if they currently have no impact on Insurance companies' profitablity, how would they impact them once covered by some other insurance porogram? if they are worried their current customer base would migrate over to this public option, guess what? THAT'S COMPETITION!!

maybe everyone will benefit as insurance companies reduce costs in order to retain their market share. and they cant reduce service or they will lose their customers. so they have an incentive to make their business more efficient. what is wrong with that??

I would rather have an 'option', then no option at all. It would be like, being back at square one. No 'option' and no health care insurance. Options mean.., it's your 'choice'. Your money and your choice. Your decision.., not the federal government or a insurance company. Mike in Montana

You are absolutely right. Any thing wo a public option will just be robbing Medicare to gtreen up the insurance muggers.

Good. Don't support it.

We are all tired of paying so much in taxes and I don't want anything else nationalized!

no public option.............get used to it

all government employees and elected officials should be forced to be on this public option.They should also be forced to take the very least amount of coverage offered by this public option.
Lets see if they would then vote for it

If my congressman doesn't support public option, I will no longer vote for him and no longer vote democrat.

John King you make me ashamed. I used to think you had independent thoughts.

The flip side of this coin of competition, is ignorin' the uninsured somewhat and forgin' ahead w/ republican way of handlin' it.

Thank you for understanding that reform without a public option is not reform at all. Now, what do we have to do to get it done right?

Rep.Tom Price, who is preventing the private insurance market from organizing cooperatives? Where is this logic coming from? If the private insurance market needs government backed guarantees especially, financial ones, etc to operate then it is a government insurance option and let us call it what it is.

The reason why there are no substantive non-profit insurance cooperatives is that they are not as viable as it seems now!!! So please let the critics spare us the double talk that non-profit insurance cooperatives can adequately fill the void in this current health insurance market. Remember AIG and the fact the federal government had to bail it out with $180 billion because the private insurance market could not bail it out.

All we are asking for is access to the same choices our Senators get: we deserve to be able to choose private or public insurance, just like the rest of Congress does!

Opensecrets.org

Go there and look at how much money our Politicians have taken from Insurance Company campaign contributions. That tells you WHO our politicians listen to.

NOT US. Vote them out.

One of the quotations within the article cites comments from Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson; to wit: "because without a public option, we'll have the same number of people uninsured. If the insurance companies wanted to insure these people now, they'd be insured." With all due respect, this palaver from the congressional representative is an example of the "red herrings", flawed reasoning and misguided focus prevalent within the entire debate about Health Insurance Reform. In retort, ..."the same number of people uninsured..." could become insured very quickly under existing government programs, or slight revisions thereto, such as Medicaid and special programs for children; if there were money to pay for the addition of the purported ~50 million to coverage. To paraphrase the representative's second sentence, if the government wanted to accept responsibility, and the financial obligation for the uninsured segment of the population, then that could be accomplished forthwith. In summary: the central issue is MONEY! What should health care cost? Whom, or which entities (e.g., government or private, et al) should determine the costs of the health care? And, most important, who is going to pay?

I have the solution to helath care reform allow the private insurance companies to continue charging huge premiums and have the government pay out all claims. This way those poor executives could continue their thankless task of creating millions of good paying jobs.

why are the doctors in congress against the democrats's plan?

dems say "public option or nothing." Sounds like spoiled brats. All or nothing? What's wrong with taking steps?

Get the breakdown of opposition correct for a change: while we have 40+ percent of GOP-blind followers opposing ANY change, the OTHER opposition is in strong favor of a Single-payer approach. But what is never stated in the corporate-owned MSM is that a large percentage of those favoring a Single-payer program would settle for a public option as the best option currently available.

So at the end of the day the primary point THAT NO ONE IS MAKING is that a strong majority of US citizens are for a public option, AT THE VERY LEAST.

Co-ops will not offer significant competition to health insurers, and so far all we have from all aspects of the healthcare industry are promises that are in all likelihood completely empty.

If there is no public option, there is essentially no reform of the US healthcare system, and this country–particularly small business interests–cannot afford a continuation fo the healthcare status quo.

If Obama and his administration give in to the false arguments and fear mongering played by the Republican party about healthcare reform, especially, when the GOP is at its weakiest state – He will definitely lose my vote and support for re-election!

HEHEHEHE
odrama must be watching the polls.

There must be an in between entity that provides for those persons who are not able to do so on their own. It must be an entity large enough that would carry such a load. This way all bases are covered. Just because someone is covered today doesn't mean that they are guaranteed to be covered tomorrow, I don't care who you work for, nothing is certain.

We are waiting to vote out democrats who dont vote for public option in 2010, they have been warned.

We need the public option that 's the whole point of the legislation. The insurance companies won't give up profits first until they are forced to compete.

If some of the insurance companies go out of business – tough luck. It is about time people get to have coverage at reasonable rates vs letting insurance executives deciding who gets to live or die.

I would like to reinforce: WITHOUT A PUBLIC OPTION the same people that are UNINSURED would still be UNINSURED. If private insurers wanted the uninsured to become insured we would have been. The private insurers only robbed peter (those insured) to pay paul (those uninsured) by increasing rates to cover those who are not able to pay. There must be a PUBLIC OPTION

looks like the Dems are eating their own..................sweet.....no bill...see ya Barry

Obama's "TOWN-HALL-MEETINGS" wIth him its all about his
message and it is all campaigning and not explaining the health
care issue..How could he in the first place when the Democrats talk
about this and that version...Not misinfromation is what angers
The people but ...NON-IMFROMATION-FROM-THE DISUNITED-
DEMOCRATIC-CAMP...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Liberal Democrats know the "public-option" was not really about competition and "ensuring a level playing field" rather the public-option was a first major step towards government-run, single payer healthcare.

Healthcare reform should include free-market,but regulated capitalist solutions to lowering heathcare costs, such as cross-state insurance, more individual involvement in consuming medical services, elimination of government subsidies, etc..

The majority of the American people want public option.
And, how could they not?? It will force the insurance companies to
become competitive and eliminate their raping of the American
people, both in costs and care, that has been going on for years.
I most certainly would trust govenment more in being involved in
health care than continue to leave our welfare up to big business.
You need to read the contributions these so called blue "cross"
politicians are getting from the medical related associations.
Grassley alone has received over $2.6 MILLION! Of course he
is going to sponsor anything that is in favor of his campaign
contributors.
We can no longer allow or tolerate big business, lobbyists, special interests and those who support them control, run our country
and make crucial decisions on our welfare.

There are proposals on both sides to provide insurance for those who don't have it without taking over the entire industry and changing the system that 90% of the people now are happy with. Problems in healthcare can be fixed without a government takeover. The 47 million is a false number. Once you take out the illegal immigrants and the young and healthy who don't want healthcare then you have about 15 million people who need insurance. There are 300 million people in this country. It makes no sense to bankrupt our entire economy and takeover the entire system for 15 million people. The healthcare bill as it stands now is just the nose under the tent for socialist systems and Americans are not going to approve of socialism.

Gee, two Republicans and 1 Democrat...typical of John King...sort of like Wolf Blitzer having David Frum, a republican, on a socalled non partisan panel and Lou Dobbs, a socalled Independent, who spends his whole show bashing the President.

Without a public option there will be no healthcare insurance reform passed. 1/2 of Congress will not support legislation without it. And President Obama will be a one term President. Good luck getting progressives and left of center independents to vote for him if he and the Democrats cave on this one.

This is not universal healthcare, nor even single payer, such as what Canada has. Its a simple public option to provide some competition to help lower costs and gurantee coverage to those that can't afford it or are uninsured.

If the President can't stand strong for this, then he'll face a strong primary challenge in 2011 for President.

In the minds of most progressives, this is THE reason we voted for Obama and the Democrats. Next time, we'll vote for the new Progressive Party candidates.

Health insurance is not a civil right. How about everyone is forced to have catastrophic insurance, tort reform, and interstate competition for insurance companies??? The illegals can go back to their country for insurance.

I love how you uniformed Obama sheep are stil blaming Republcans when the fact is that your coward in chief could get WHATEVER he wanted passed if all the Democrats went along, the problem the coward is running into is that some non-sheep Democrats are not towing the line with all his uh, uh, uh, uh non-specific big dreams.

The real HEROES here are the Democrats, Republicans and independents that took the time to speak out at these town halls and I went as an independent to voice my concerns as well, not a mob, but people fed up with Pelosi, Reid and the fraud in chief and their lies and non-factual responses.

Tort reform, the ability to buy insurance across state lines and NO public option are three REPUBLICAN/INDEPENDENT ideas that are GOOD, make the reform specific to what needs to be fixed as you don't tear down a whole house to fix a leak in your basement unless you are a nitwit lefty liberal like your "president" (no cap deserved).

Work and listen to independents/moderates and some conservative ideas and keep the fringe elements of both sides out of it and we will get the needed MINOR refoms that we need.

I never contributed to a election nor volunteered . . . but I did for Obama in 2008.
If he and the other dems can't show some backbone and make some change, maybe it'll be Deans year in 2012. . . . lets see how that feels:

DEAN 2012!!!

not bad. . .

How foolish would it be for any Member of Congress to vote against a bill that will pass in order to hold out for one that won't? Some would call that "letting the impossible get in the way of the possible".

[...] thing that pisses me off about liberals is this tendency we have to say "all or nothing at all" when trying to get something passed - like health insurance [...]

Well get used to it because it's dead......and if you keep dragging it around they're going to start filming the remake of "Weekend at Bernie's".

The Trojan Horse has been shattered at the City Gates....Thank God.

Here's a great example of a Democrat who is going to let one element of a reform bill decide whether or not he can support health care reform and, in the process, endanger the likelihood that we will ever have health care reform in this country. This man is just as big of an idiot as the nut cases who are screaming "death panels" and "socialized medicine" in the town halls. Where do we find these morons to lead us? Come to think of it, we're the morons. Look at all the disinformation that so many of us bought lock, stock & barrel from the insurance industry and lunatic fringe of the GOP. How many people still think Sarah Palin was right when she claimed that the reform bill in Congress meant that the government was going to create death panels, despite the fact that the totally optional "end of life" counseling provisions were put there by Republicans and already existed in previous legislation? What a bunch of sad, stupid people we are. We get what we deserve.

And we should believe Price?And why would that be?hahaha

We must have the public option and to insure it is fair to the private insurance companies we need it to be cost plus 10% profit to the Government. In my opinion that profit should go to help save either Medicare, Social Security or both. The other issue I think you have to have is either a public option for Doctors to get reasonable insurance rates and /or limit their liability if they make an honest mistake.

I do not understand how there can be so many interpretations of the points in this bill and that, in my opinion, is the most worrisome issue of all. Mr. Obama claims he will not ration, he will not dictate end of life care, he will not tap our bank accounts, but many reputable news services have in fact listed exact text from the document to the contrary. I believe once we let the government in, they will do what they want because the language is so vague. Therefore, with a bill that seems to have been rushed and a President which tried to bully it through the approval process in addition to language that leaves so much room for interpretation I can not understand how the public should support this bill and I believe it should NOT be passed.

Health Insurance Mafia are worst than Terrorists.

Terrorist kills innocent with Guns.

Health Insurance Mafia kills innocent by Health Care Deprivation.

Health Insurance Mafia consists of Rich people like Madoff, who became Rich by Plunder, Embazzlement, Extortion.

Health Insurance Mafia, pays Bribes to GOP.

GOP supports Health Insurance Mafia, to oppose Obama's Plan.

GOP consists of Criminals, Scoundrels, Rascals and Bastards.