In an op-ed for CNN.com, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor called for a bipartisan bill — but one that doesn’t include a public option.
Cantor wrote that, although Republicans and Democrats agree on “several key reforms,” House Democrats want a bill “riddled with toxic and controversial provisions.”
“The most prominent poison pill is the government-run plan,” he wrote.
He then claims that private insurers won’t be able to compete against a government plan, even though the government plan would be lower quality.
“Private insurance companies simply cannot compete against a government with the leverage to set the prices it pays to health care providers (the downside, of course, is that care the government is willing to pay for will be rationed and of lower quality),” he wrote.
“The inclusion of such radioactive measures risks squandering a needed opportunity to come together in bipartisan fashion,” he continued.
Many Democrats, however, say they wouldn’t vote for a bill unless it includes some kind of public option.
Cantor suggested basing reform on lowering costs for individuals, creating high-risk pools for those with pre-existing conditions and reforming medical liability law.
