Anyone listen to Ed Schultz today???

[tinkerbell41]

He seemed to think requiring Insurance companies to take everyone and being unable to deny treatment etc.. that those said companies will not go along with it and Obama will say fine. Then everyone will be allowed to take the public option. Ed called it a masterful play. It seemed logical to me. I was worried at first, but being framed this way made me see it differently. I like to be optimistic, we'll see how it plays out.

[Postman]

1. Time for some smelling salts....

This is a Medicare Part D for the Health Insurance Companies times 44 million or is it 49 million uninsured now?

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

2. Not necessarily....

Health Insurance Companies insure everybody, but they can't deny coverage or drop existing insureds. I think a lot of insurance companies will beg the federal government for a public option under those conditions.

Their only hope will be to limit the terms of the public option so that the government can only accept the high-risk, high-cost population. But if they don't get what they want (campaign finance reform is our friend), then we've got a de facto public option because people WILL go for the public option if it provides reliable coverage at a lower cost.

There's a lot of "ifs" in Ed's scenario, but its not outside the realm of possibility.

[Matariki]

3. I was hoping that's what Obama meant when he said the Public Option is a means to an end

He addressed the Progressives specifically w/ that.

Hope that's what he meant.

[Cleita]

4. Sometimes Big Ed reaches for straws.

The reality is the deck chairs got shuffled around on the Titanic because none of our leaders seem to have the guts to make real change and make some real enemies, but that is what needs to be done.