Public (Option) Enemy #1, by Campus Progress writer, Dylan Matthews, explores the option of a public health insurance plan amidst the current debate for health care reform and its benefits for young people, as well as its opposition from legislators like McConnell (R-KY) and the private insurance big wigs.
The public plan, both alone and as part of a broader health care package, would provide substantial benefits for young workers between 20 and 30. “Right now the insurance market is very, very difficult to navigate for a young freelancer trying to navigate the rest of their job details,” explains Matt Singer, CEO of the progressive activist organization Forward Montana. “The health insurance exchange/connecter outlined in both the Baucus and the Obama plans, plus the public health insurance option, will make the whole system more navigable for people overwhelmed with a lot of other pieces in the reform.”
Singer added that the cost savings of the plan would be particularly attractive to young workers’ employers. Based on his own experience running the health insurance plan for Forward Montana’s employees, an exchange including a public option would be helpful for those administrators determining health coverage for their young employees. “First, we’d end up in a bigger pool, which would bring our rates down,” he explains. In other words, the public option would have a larger group of people purchasing insurance than in pools of employer insurance plans, meaning that risk can be shared more widely, ultimately bringing costs down.