Kent Conrad: Government-Run Plan Doesn’t Fit Our “Culture”

Sen. Kent Conrad has come up with a new argument against the public option. When asked by Ezra Klein, why he opposes a public option he said, he doesn't “think a government-run plan best fits this culture.”

I would be very curious to know how Sen. Conrad came to his conclusion. Just today a new NYT/CBS News poll was released showing that 65% of Americans favor creating a Medicare-like public option open to everyone.

Government administered health insurance programs are not a foreign concept in this country. There are currently tens of millions of Americans who are currently very satisfied with the coverage they get from our country's existing government-run plans (Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, VA system).

If Sen. Conrad meant to say that a government-run plan doesn't best fit the Washington, DC, culture of high-paid corporate lobbyists, I would be inclined to agree with him. Out in the rest of America, where people are struggling with the crushing cost of health care, most Americans think the idea would fit our culture just fine.

Throughout this entire health care reform debate, Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) has been the biggest advocate of the CBO. He demanded that CBO score health care reform over ten years. He also demanded the CBO must examine the bill and conclude that it would not increase the deficit over the next 20 years.

Yet, when the CBO disagrees with him, he had no problem simply ignoring their findings. Conrad has been pushing his idea of co-ops despite the growing evidence that they would have little or no effect. When the Star Tribune asked Conrad if he agreed with CBO director Doug Elmendorf's conclusion that, "They seem unlikely to establish a significant market presence in many areas of the country," Conrad answered:



I think this should be defined as the new Conrad CBO Standard. It is the belief by Kent Conrad that everyone must follow the conclusions of the CBO, unless the CBO disagrees with Kent Conrad.

The Congressional Budget Office just said that a public option based on Medicare reimbursement rates would save the government hundreds of millions dollars in comparison to a public option that would have to individually negotiate reimbursement rates with medical providers. This goes against the Blue Dogs's so-called fiscal conservatism in opposing a robust public option. Here's more from this story below:



An actual robust public option saves money, and it's what the majority of constituents in districts like Rep. Mike Ross's district supports. Will Rep. Mike Ross actually listen to what the CBO says, or act like Senator Kent Conrad in dismissing the CBO's projections about the public option?

Once again, please keep on donating to our fund for the ad we're running in Arkansas against Rep. Mike Ross! We're just almost a thousand dollars away from meeting our goal of $78,000!

Speaking of CBO scores, the agency is also scoring H.R. 676, John Conyer's single-payer proposal. This is a byproduct of the deal Waxman and Pelosi struck with the House Progressive Caucus to allow the bill a full floor vote. In order to do that, it needs a CBO score. And it's going to get one. I'm really looking forward to seeing those numbers.