The Public Option Already Exists in Several States, Can We Grow From There?

When it comes to implementing a public option or a single payer system, there seems to be a big question regarding the "cost and time" for how to set up the basic infrastructure and ground-work for such an undertaking.

In Oregon we have a company called "State Accident Insurance Fund" (SAIF). This is a state owned insurance company set up by the state, several years ago, to keep workmen's comp rates under control (sounds like a public option to me). As a matter of fact, when they tend to have a surplus they even rebate it back to rate payers. If the media gets a-hold of it, there is a ripple of flack from the tax payers.

While listening to talk radio during the "Health Insurance non-care Reform" debates, I have become aware several states already have state owned insurance companies like this. The basic infrastructure is already in place, with offices scattered across the states.

How difficult would it be to expand these companies to include "Health Care" coverage? We hear that the Canadian system started in Saskatchewan and grew across the country.

I suggest we go to those states first to set up a public option or a single payer system by expanding these companies. After all, that is one of the arguments for a single payer system; "It will take the burden of workmen's comp off of employers."

This seems to me to be the quickest, simplest, less expensive way to get started.

I will be spending the next several days forwarding this message to Peter Defazio, Jeff Merkley, Ron Wyden, Dennis Kucinich, Alan Grayson, Ralph Nader, Amy Goodman, Thom Hartman and any body else I can think of.

I hope to get some feed back to expand this idea and hopefully it can grow into a movement.

If anybody has any input, I am open to your help.

thnx

Mel Neagle

Brownsville, Oregon

oreagle2010@gmail.com