10/29/09: TWD's Agenda For The Day- So What Happened To The Robust Public Option

You would think that the House, with how fierce its Speaker has been as well as having a clear dominate majority in the Democratic side would produce the strongest health care reform bill for REAL reform in this country.

And especially after last week, last Thursday, where the Speaker said that she had the votes for a robust public option, you would have all assured yourself that at least the House will give the nation its best shot at ultimate reform happening.

Then all of a sudden, last Friday happened. And ever since then, the robust public option became what it is now today.

Not robust.

Under pressure from moderate-to-conservative members of the House Democratic caucus, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has decided to propose a government-run insurance plan that would negotiate rates with doctors and hospitals, rather than using prices set by the government, aides said Wednesday.

Ms. Pelosi said the public plan, which she prefers to call a “consumer option,” would compete with private insurers. But the speaker was apparently unable to muster the votes needed for the “robust” liberal version of a public plan, which she has repeatedly said would save more money for consumers and the government.

As I talked about in yesterday's "Catch Up" thread, highlighting the mistake being made here by Pelosi will hit the working class.

This was the last hope for the strongest public option most likely, because putting any energy to believe that it will happen in the Senate is certainly frivolous indeed.

There will be House liberals/progressives truly unhappy with this final decision made by Nancy Pelosi, not forcing the Blue Dog conservative Democrats to support and vote for the strongest of public options on the table.

And they will truly be wondering, just like many of us, how things can change so fast in one week.