The Washington Monthly

July 3, 2009

HAGAN HERO?.... Just last week, freshman Sen. Kay Hagan (D) of North Carolina stood as a possible obstacle to meaningful health care reform. Hagan publicly expressed reservations about a public option, and given the current makeup of the Senate HELP Committee, that was a real problem.

Brian Beutler explained last week, "[W]ith a narrow Democratic majority on the committee and its chairman, Ted Kennedy, in poor health, [Hagan's] vote is crucial to moving the bill forward -- something the panel's been working toward for days now without success."

A few days ago, though, the HELP Committee unveiled a strong proposal, which included a public option, and which enjoys the support of the committee's Democrats -- including Hagan.

On Thursday, Sen. Kay Hagan (D-N.C.) offered her support for the health care overhaul proposal put forth by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, of which she is a member. In the process, she issued a statement that removed any doubt about where she stands on a publicly run insurance option.
"My colleagues and I on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee have been working on a plan to reform the health care system in this country," Hagan's statement read. "We have crafted a plan that will stabilize health care costs and includes a Community Health Insurance Option, which I support. It is a backstop option for people without access to affordable coverage. Health care providers will not be required to participate, payment rates will be set in a competitive fashion, and the community health insurance option will compete on a level playing field with private health insurance plans in the gateway."

The public plan portion of the proposal, known as the Community Health Insurance Option, would be overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services, but follow the rules set forth by the private market. At the same time, it would lower the costs of health care by pooling the purchasing powers of its participants and it would drastically lower the administrative costs customary to private providers. In short, one source on the committee said, it is the robust proposal that progressive wanted. And now Hagan, as her office confirmed to the Huffington Post, supports it.

It's possible Hagan was swayed by public pressure -- MoveOn.org ran ads in North Carolina, urging the senator to support a public option -- or perhaps she was persuaded by her colleagues to do the right thing.

Either way, it's an encouraging development to have one more Democratic centrist in the Senate on board with a public plan.

—Steve Benen 10:00 AM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (12)

Comments

It's time to drop the idea that these people are centrists. They are right wingers, just not as far right as most Republicans. A centrist is someone who is actually in the center of the population, not the Congress.

Posted by: Texas Aggie on July 3, 2009 at 10:15 AM | PERMALINK

I'm sure there were many of her constituents (like me) who contacted her to say that we didn't donate to her campaign last November expecting she would oppose meaningful health care reform, including a public option. Maybe she got the message?

Posted by: dalloway on July 3, 2009 at 10:25 AM | PERMALINK

I It is a backstop option for people without access to affordable coverage. Health care providers will not be required to participate, payment rates will be set in a competitive fashion, and the community health insurance option will compete on a level playing field with private health insurance plans in the gateway."

Is it just me, or is she saying, "We made it as unattractive as possible."

Posted by: Danp on July 3, 2009 at 10:29 AM | PERMALINK

Is it just me, or is she saying, "We made it as unattractive as possible."

Or, "We made it look as unattractive as possible." If she can sell it this way to her momey-men and we get her vote . . . good!

Posted by: Midland on July 3, 2009 at 11:05 AM | PERMALINK

The next time we have a GOP president, I bet the DHHS will be run like Shrub "ran" the DOJ, SEC, etc. (into the ground).

Posted by: Chopin on July 3, 2009 at 12:05 PM | PERMALINK

Good for Hagan, now will Landrieu come through?

Posted by: Neil B ☺ on July 3, 2009 at 1:01 PM | PERMALINK

I'm with Texas Aggie, Steve. Please don't contribute to the fraudulent misnomer of these people as "centrists" or "moderates". They are conservatives. Maybe not far right, wingnut conservatives--but definitely conservatives in the traditional sense. When you buy into the "centrist/moderate" propaganda verbiage--it makes everyone else look fringy and immoderate and, as a progressive, that makes me immoderately mad. Since when has conservative become "centrist." Move back the goal posts, please.

Posted by: Frak on July 3, 2009 at 1:11 PM | PERMALINK

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the public option in that proposal ONLY available to those without insurance? That destroys the entire point - to provide competition that will lower cost and to create a plan big enough to bargain with drug companies, etc. It ALSO means that the public option will be the insurer of last resort and be the place the insurance companies dump the most unprofitable "customers".

If that's the case then this is just a giveaway to the insurance companies that will HURT the cause of real health reform.

Posted by: chaboard on July 3, 2009 at 1:22 PM | PERMALINK

it's an encouraging development to have one more Democratic centrist in the Senate on board with a public plan.

I suppose therefore, that it would likewise "encouraging" to have "centrists" come out against murder, rape, or arson?

Posted by: Duncan Kinder on July 3, 2009 at 1:59 PM | PERMALINK

I really don't see why the insurance companies are so worked up about a public option. They don't give a shit about the group who would be looking for coverage under the public option anyway. Unless, of course, there are vastly more americans out there who are fed up with the private insurance system. Could this possibly be ?

Posted by: rbe1 on July 3, 2009 at 2:43 PM | PERMALINK

You health care reform package.

Ha ha, charade you are.

You radiate cold shafts of broken glass.

Posted by: Gallop Trollop! on July 3, 2009 at 3:02 PM | PERMALINK

"It is a backstop option for people without access to affordable coverage...and...will compete on a level playing field with private health insurance plans in the gateway."

Oh, okay. The public option will only insure high-risk individuals--those whose care costs way more than the premiums they pay--but it will be required to compete on a "level playing field" with private plans that cherry-pick only the young and healthy as customers.

Then the Republicans will complain because the public option has higher costs than private plans, so we should get rid of it.

Posted by: Nancy Irving on July 4, 2009 at 5:19 AM | PERMALINK