Insurance co-op idea gains appeal
By: Susan Ferrechio
Chief Congressional Correspondent
June 16, 2009
The idea of establishing a health insurance cooperative appears to be gaining popularity in the Senate, as Democrats grapple with the staggering cost and mounting opposition to the creation of a government-run health insurance provider.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he was “very impressed” after talking about such a plan with Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., who represents one of a half-dozen states that offer a health care cooperatives.
The cooperative idea — championed by Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D., — would have the government establish, but not run, an insurance company that operates as a nonprofit for its members’ benefit. Reid said he “would be satisfied” with such a plan if it would make private health insurance companies “honest.”
The majority leader said Reed will “push this real hard” as a member of the Senate health committee, although that panel has so far produced a bill with a government-run option.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., who is writing a separate health care reform bill, said he was weighing the idea.
“There are examples of a number of cooperatives that are working,” Baucus said. A report from the Congressional Budget Office says the cost of the leading health plan in the Senate would be about $1 trillion over 10 years, even before the price of a government-run health insurance company is factored in.
