Whose Option?

Republican Olympia Snowe voted for the Senate Finance Committee health care bill (to get it out of committee). She still claims she's against a public option, but could support a "trigger":

"I think the government would have a disproportionate advantage" in the event of a government-run option, Snowe acknowledged. At the same time, she added, "I want to make sure the insurance industry performs, and that's why we eliminate many egregious practices."

If the industry didn't follow through on congressionally-mandated changes aimed at making health care more affordable, she said, "then you could have the public option kick in immediately."

I don't know if she doesn't get it or just thinks we're stupid. A trigger is the public option. Once the government can determine whether the free market is working or not, then you don't have a free market. Everything will have to be cut along government lines, so it's the government, not the public, that has the option. Either they can require insurers provide exactly what they'd have the government do if there were no free market, or they can decide to force the private insurers out of business with increasingly impossible demands that drive everyone into government plans. Their call.

(Harry Reid just said that one of the reasons for health care reform is to cut down on excessive profits. You know, a lot of things I buy cost a lot--maybe the government should step in elsewhere and make sure the companies who sell me stuff don't make too much money.)