

WSJ: 'FANNIE MED' CO-OPS ARE SENATE VERSION OF GOVERNMENT HEALTH CARE TAKEOVER

The Senate Finance Committee is struggling to pull together a health reform bill to bring before the Senate for a vote. Up for debate is whether to allow the government to sponsor health care "co-ops" to compete with private insurers. While the idea may sound okay in theory, Wall Street Journal editors explain why such a plan would lead to another Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac government takeover of a private industry, providing American with less control over their health care, driving up cost and decreasing quality. Here's an excerpt from today's editorial: The details of the Senate Finance Committee’s hush-hush health talks aren’t fully known, but leaks suggest that one all-but-certain highlight will be new federally created health “cooperatives” to compete against private insurers. The onus is on Republican negotiators Chuck Grassley and Mike Enzi to explain why this isn’t merely the House “public option” in a better suit. North Dakota Democrat Kent Conrad floated the co-op concept last month, to attract Republicans who oppose President Obama’s state-run plan. According to Mr. Conrad, these nonprofits—modeled on local electricity or rural farm co-ops—fulfill the liberal goal of competing against private insurers, yet avoid “government control,” since they will be member-owned. Presto, a Beltway splitting of the political baby. And in theory, health-care co-ops needn’t be destructive.[...] But the Senate is talking about government-sponsored co-ops, and that means multiple devils are in the details... Click here to read the op-ed in its entirety.

###