Conrad Moves Closer To Public Health Care After Negotiations

Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) moved sharply toward public health care Monday, saying that he could "absolutely" support major parts of Sen. Chuck Schumer's compromise proposal for a public option after closed-door negotiations.

Conrad has backed a health care co-op proposal that advocates of a public option have thoroughly rejected. Schumer (D-N.Y.) took their side on Sunday in comments made to the Associated Press. "I don't think I could say with a straight face that this [co-op proposal] is at all close to a nationwide public option," Schumer said. "Right now, this co-op idea doesn't come close to satisfying anyone who wants a public plan."

The wheels looked to be coming off with health care reform last week. But a poll showing huge public support for a public health care option and a strong bill from the House of Representatives have changed the dynamic.

Schumer and other backers of a public option insist that any plan must be national in scope, have substantial funding at the beginning from the federal government, and include national purchasing power in order to negotiate lower prices.

Conrad ticked off the areas of agreement that were reached Monday.

"National structure: I believe to be effective there has to a national entity with state affiliates and those affiliates have to have the ability to regionalize. I think his concern there can be addressed," said Conrad. "Second, he believes there needs to be national purchasing power. I think that's a good point that the national entity would be able to do purchasing on behalf of the state and regional affiliates and on behalf of the national entity itself."

Schumer wants $10 billion to start the plan, after which it would be self-sustaining. Conrad said the "state of negotiations" is that $3 to $4 billion would be provided.

Schumer wants the board overseeing the plan to be appointed by the president. Conrad said that according to the state of negotiations, the Health and Human Services Secretary would be charged with appointing the board.

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Conrad wants the board to be temporary and eventually disappear, leaving the co-op to be run by its members. Schumer, said Conrad, still wants the board to be permanent.

"Poll numbers, as you know, are here today and gone tomorrow. What's going to decide what passes here are votes," said Conrad. "Votes of members. And the reason I was asked to get involved in this was an effort to find a compromise. And what I read in Senator Schumer's comments are that he's continuing to negotiate, and negotiate in a forthright, aggressive way. Good for him."

As Conrad spoke to reporters, Schumer stepped off the Senate floor and passed the conversation.

"My remarks were not directed at him, they were directed at someone on the other side of the aisle," Schumer quipped, underlining, if only in jest, the new Democratic unity that seemed to be forming.

UPDATE: I'm getting a lot of angry e-mails as a result of this diary.

I reported that Conrad said he could support "major parts" of Schumer's public option proposal. Schumer wanted any public option to be national in scope and have national purchasing power, concessions that Conrad agreed to. They still differ, as I reported, on the duration of the board's existence -- Schumer wants it to be permanent; Conrad wants it temporary -- and the amount of start-up funding. Conrad isn't abandoning the coop model, but he is agreeing to major parts of Schumer's compromise. He's by no means fully embracing a public option, but he certainly moved in Schumer's direction.

On MSNBC on Tuesday, Conrad was read the first line of the story above and asked if it was wrong. "No, that report is not wrong. What is wrong is the interpretation of what that means. What Senator Schumer was discussing was changes to the coop plan. He wasn't talking about a pure public option," said Conrad.

When Conrad originally proposed the coops, they were to be regional in size and have no national purchasing power. The changes to the coop plan make it more similar to a national public option than it was when Conrad first proposed it.

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Comments

[Ohsherri]

74%..And that's even before Obama pounding away at this to the public.
That's before the Dems even have their sheet together.

You know what...with 74% now..they could take it to the top and PUSH FOR the REAL
healthcare with REAL teeth and that's Universal. They could do it.

But...folks..
they can't even put the pressure on for poor Al Franken.

[PhilipTaylor]

Results from Nate Silver's Model of Senator's Ideology, Health Spending in State, and PAC Campaign Contributions

Democratic Senators Uncommitted on Public Option

Senator --- Probability of Public Option Support

Begich 87.4%
Byrd 84.6%
Cantwell 80.9%
Dorgan 73.1%
Tester 65.1%
Wyden 57.3%
Nelson, Bill 54.4%
Hagen 52.2%
Lieberman 45.1%
Udall, M. 39.1%
Carper 37.7%
Feinstein 31.1%
Bennet 27.4%
Conrad 24.7%
Pryor 23.0%
Reid 19.8%
Bayh 11.7%
Lincoln 5.5%
Nelson, Ben 1.0%
Warner 0.7%
Baucus, Max 0.6%

21 Senators that NEED CONVERSIONS to the PUBLIC OPTION!

When are we going to get Campaign Funding Reforms to make our Votes count after the November Election?

How can we win with 38 Democrats for a Strong Public Option?

Why is Max Baucus head of anything to do with Healthcare or Insurance?

[platanoman]

I can't believe Democrats are not behind this with all this support by the public. Republicans were successful in pulling the wools over people's eyes on off-shore drilling last year when everyone knew that was not going to really do anything to bring oil prices down. We have proof that public option is very popular with the people. Ok, find a way to pay for it. Tax soda or something like that. Be honest with the American people. This is going to benefit everyone.

[LemonMeringue]

I don't trust them to implement a public option in a way that will deliver what it could: improvement through real competition.

They are all bought and paid for. All of them. Except Kucinich and Nader.

Only getting rid of insurance companies altogether will make a real difference. As long as they are involved the profit motive will keep us from getting real change.

[stop7997]

Ah, but some Democrats are not Democrats, they are Democrats In Name Only. And they are the cause of our government's dysfunction and the voters' cynicism. Voters say "Democrats and Republicans: they're all the same"; when in fact it's only about 1/3 of the Democrats who are "the same". But that crucial 1/3 is enough to kill any real progress that might be made and give the rest of the Dems a bad name. Unfortunately, all-too-often, Obama has been acting like a Democrat In Name Only.

[LemonMeringue]

http://singlepayeraction.org

Single payer is the solution. Please sign it.

[1dogs2]

Hi, Lemon. I couldn't find any petition on the linked site and I wanted to read it. I'm torn between fighting a losing battle for a single-payer system and fighting for a genuine, inclusive public option. Fighting for single-payer makes sense because even though it has (IMO) zero chance of passing, it creates a lot of pressure for the compromise a genuine public option open to everyone who wants it.

The only way of getting the insurance companies under control, again IMO, is by letting them die a natural death (or severe reduction in power) that will result from having a genuine public option. There is simply not enough support among the electorate to do them in by a frontal attack.

Two other points: a number of the European systems are public/private hybrids, including France and the Netherlands, all of which deliver better health care at half the cost of the American system. A well-drafted public option could at least theoretically attain the same result. And not ALL members of Congress are bought and paid for. Sens. Kennedy and Durbin come to mind, for example.

[fairness4all]

You just sign up (only your email address and zip code).

http://singlepayeraction.org

Click on the "Join the Action" link to become part of the group pushing for Single Payer.

[Justin Satzman]

Keep the pressure on, contacting these "Democrats" on a daily basis and MoveOn is there to help.

[Awake-and-Sing]

"New politics" doesn't work. It is more important we get a quality bill with a robust public option than get a "bipartisan" bill.

After the trail of destruction that failed conservative policies have left at home, abroad and to our constitution, the conservative movement deserves to have a public not-for-profit plan rammed down their throats.

If Republicans and their corporate puppeteers want to try and kill the public option, they should have to do that out in the open where everyone can see them and not be able to hide behind feckless bipartisanship or "new politics". We should dare Republicans to oppose what 76% of the people want, not make it easy for them under the guise of the false religion of "bipartisanship".

All "new politics" is doing is giving conservatives political cover they don't deserve.

Proposed the most robust public option possible and use the budget reconciliation process to ram it through.

I really wish Obama would undercut the DINOs at the knees by stating he will ONLY sign a health care reform bill if it has the option of a robust, public, not-for-profit plan in it.

"Bipartisanship" is a false god. Often it leads to watered down legislation that only serves to make people feel good without actually accomplishing anything.

[socalgal38]

More help for the single payer system. Real Health Care Reform.

http://s209363542.onlinehome.us/
http://www.hr676.org/

[valleygent]

Just get the public option DONE Conrad...your job depends on it. And that goes for the rest of the spineless Democratic Senators too.

[fedupinfla]

Please sign these petitions!!

http://ga3.org/campaign/healthpetition?source=healthpetition

http://standwithdrdean.com/

http://www.americansunitedforchange.org/page/s/AMA

Let those in Washington know we DEMAND a public option!!!!!

[socalgal38]

Are you working for the insurance company? It sure starting to sound like it to me.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/issues/health.cfm to sign up for single payer.

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/06/16-4 the information about public plan.

[ohrly]

The Legislature needs to work on figuring out the best way to implement a public health care plan, not quibble over whether or not we should have one. If we do not end up with a full public health care option, we should take a lesson from the French and demand one. The government is there to work for us, not the lobbyists.

[Ohsherri]

To me...it sounds like they are trying very very hard to squeeze out some kind
of watered down...cowardly...photo-oped...piece of sh..

just to say that they "tried" something with the word PUBLIC in it.

You know what...Go to he //......just go to he // !!!

[socalgal38]

There is going to be tons of photo ops. All talk and no show for real Health Care reform.

[kylie]

No Co-Op Plan that would do the usual diluted and ineffectual Republican gesture at being involved in a new name policy that is filled with nothing.
Nothing except words and empty phrases.
We need a single payer plan. A public option plan that will help everyone.
Insurance companies have too much profits and power--they need to be regulated and have oversight so they will Provide Health Care without trying to make themselves billionaires by doing so.
They are out of control like the banks--prices sky-high and quality and services getting worse every day.

[TJCole]

An administrator in a Canadian hospital recently commented on the difference between the American and Canadian systems and perspectives on Health Care...

In Canada providing Health Care is their business, in America Health Care is a business..!

We are approaching this so called reform from an entirely wrong perspective..and point of view...

Providing your people Health Care is a fundamental matter of serving the people...and that is the purpose of government, to serve the people, not greedy private corrupt interests but the people..!

[USCitizenShareHolder]

Canada health care is so HORRIBLE that their heart attack death rates declined rapidly after 1994.

"Researchers at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) found that deaths from heart disease fell by 30 per cent between 1994 and 2004, from 36 per 10,000 the first year to 25 per 10,000 a decade later. "
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2009/06/22/heart-disease-deaths.html?ref=rss

Thank God the United States doesn't do as the Canadians do.

And, thank God some of our representatives want us to continue doing as we are doing now.

Otherwise, we would live much longer and healthier lives.

[LemonMeringue]

Senator Conrad:

What if every American were allowed, paid for with our tax dollars, one physical exam a year, and one prescription.

Just that much basic, preventative care.

It would go a long way. A very long way. To build a better country.

[socalgal38]

Those of you that think this guy cares about you, check out this site. Campaign contributions
Lawyers/Law Firms $622,802 $484,766 $138,036
Insurance $367,024 $120,257 $246,767
Securities & Investment $309,575 $181,975 $127,600
Health Professionals $251,283 $22,733 $228,550
Lobbyists $237,392 $231,392 $6,000

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00004613&cycle=2008

[socalgal38]

Why am i not surprised to learn he is moving towards the public option plan that is being pushed. Does he think we believe this is a compromise that isn't involving these insurance companies?

[LemonMeringue]

I don't really trust the public option because I don't trust Congress.

Done right it would be a step in the right direction. But somehow they'll find a way to make money off it and that will sink it.

[LemonMeringue]

In the end, the lobbyists only get one vote.

Democrats may not realize that frustration - on top of 8 years of frustration with the Bush administration - has reached a tipping point. Frustration has become RIGHTEOUS ANGER.

Dems will be thrown out if they betray the people who elected them. Just because we despise Republicans and would never go back there does not mean Dems get a free pass.

This may be the catalyst for third parties to become truly competitive.

[socalgal38]

It can't be any worse that what we have now. If single payer isn't an option, I don't want any party to ever be in charge again.

[ncmom54]

Tell ABC to include SINGLE PAYER in Health Care Debate!
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3816

[LemonMeringue]

Thank you, fwiw I did.