Sen. Brown Circulates Letter Urging Support for Public Option in Final Reform Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) is urging his Senate colleagues to sign a letter he is circulating on the public option. The letter expresses strong support for the inclusion of a public option in any health reform legislation that will be considered on the Senate floor.

“As we finalize health reform legislation, we shouldn’t forget that a majority of Americans, doctors, and Members of Congress support a public option,” Brown said. “Four out of five congressional committees passed health reform legislation that includes a strong public option. We owe it to hardworking families, small businesses, and taxpayers to pass a public option that lowers costs and ensures much-need competition in the insurance industry.”

Brown’s letter expresses concern the that “absent a competitive and continuous public insurance option – health reform legislation will not produce nationwide access and ongoing cost containment.”

It continues on to express support for the public option provision passed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. “We recognize that the two Committees with jurisdiction over health reform – the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee – have taken two very different approaches with respect to this issue.  However, a strong public option has resounding support among Senate Democrats – every Democrat on HELP, three quarters of those on Finance, and what we believe is a majority of the caucus.”

A full copy of the letter can be found below.

Brown is one of the strongest advocates of the public option. Along with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), he helped write the public option language in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee-passed health reform bill. In April, Brown circulated a letter signed by 21 senators calling for a strong public health insurance option to be included in health reform efforts. In May, he introduced a resolution sponsored by 28 senators calling for a public option.

The Honorable Harry Reid
Majority Leader
United States Senate
The Capitol, S-221
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Majority Leader Reid:

We have spent the better part of this year fighting for health reform that would provide insurance access and continuity to every American in a fiscally responsible manner.  We are concerned that – absent a competitive and continuous public insurance option – health reform legislation will not produce nationwide access and ongoing cost containment.  For that reason, we are asking for your leadership on ensuring that the merged health reform bill contains a public insurance option.

As it stands, the health insurance market is dominated by a handful of for-profit health insurers that are exempt from the anti-trust laws that ensure robust competition in other markets across the United States.  Without a not-for-profit public insurance alternative that competes with these insurers based on premium rates and quality, insurers will have free rein to increase insurance premiums and drive up the cost of federal subsidies tied to those premiums.  This is simply not fiscally sustainable.

We recognize that the two Committees with jurisdiction over health reform – the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee – have taken two very different approaches with respect to this issue.  However, a strong public option has resounding support among Senate Democrats – every Democrat on HELP, three quarters of those on Finance, and what we believe is a majority of the caucus.

While promoting more co-ops is a worthy goal, it is not realistic to expect local co-ops to spring up in every corner of this country.   There are many areas of the country where the population is simply too small to sustain a local co-op plan.   We are also concerned that the administrative costs associated with financing the start-up of multiple co-op plans would far outstrip the seed money required to establish a public insurance program.

Opponents of health reform argue that a public option presents unfair competition to the private insurance companies.  However, the HELP Committee’s version of the public option is modeled after private insurance – rates are negotiated, and providers are not required to participate in the plan.  The major differences between the public and for-profit plans are that the public plan would report to taxpayers, not to shareholders, and the public plan would be available continuously in all parts of the county.  The number one goal of health reform must be to look out for the best interests of the American people – patients and taxpayers alike – not the profit margins of insurance companies.

Health reform is about improving access to health care, containing costs, and giving Americans a real choice in the insurance plan best suited to their needs.  We urge you to fight for a sustainable health care system that ensures Americans the option of a public plan in the merged Senate bill.

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