Despite anticipation about Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-Nev.) public option 'opt out' plan announced Oct. 26, he still has his work cut out for him.
Reid needs to win support from all 60 Democrats in the Senate, something that could be easier said than done with Senators like Mary Landrieu (La.) and Ben Nelson (Neb.) expressing doubts about any sort of public option plan. His plan, in theory, would allow states to opt out of the plan through agreement between the state's governor and legislature, according to the New York Times.
Maine Senator Olympia Snowe expressed "disappointment" with Reid's plan and believes that a public option should be "triggered" only if states are unable to offer reasonable health insurance to their populations. She was the only Republican on the Senate Finance Committee to support the initial healthcare bill, but said she would not support this new plan.
House Democrats, meanwhile, are just days -- if not hours -- away from introducing a healthcare bill that will make it to the floor, The Hill reports.
For more on this issue:
- read this New York Times article
- read The Hill report article