First, let's get this out of the way...
I totally agree with and support a public option in the healthcare reform package, but what happens if America gets stuck with the co-op system? I think more details about that package need to be studied now in order to make the most out of this if it happens.
Now I've heard about the co-op's getting government startup capital, but then being run by the members. I just had this thought pop into my head; what if some humongous progressive advocacy group like, oh I don't know, say MoveOn.org hooked up with a couple of political powerhouses like say, I don't know, Al Gore and Dr. Howard Dean, to create a healthcare co-op open to every American citizen. For the hell of it, let's call this co-op Healthcare 2.0. So Healthcare 2.0 gets free government startup money, but the government, which is currently full of health insurance industry bought and planted representatives, has no say as to how it's run? Well this may be even better than a public option. Let's say Healthcare 2.0 then takes on board the estimated 70%-83% of Americans that want a public option. Well it seems that Healthcare 2.0 would be the largest health insurance provider in the US, with the power to negotiate prescription drug prices (which President Obama just conceeded), bring down premiums and out-of-pocket expenses, and to make insurance widely affordable. Could they run it as a single-payer system? Or some crazy combination taking the best of both worlds?
I'm not saying that all this is going to happen (but c'mon, it's something to think about) I'm just saying, all possible outcomes of the healthcare reform should be scrutinized for the strenghts and weaknesses that could be exploited for the benefit of the American people. It's likely that something is going to pass, we gotta be prepared people.