Reid announces 'broad agreement' on health care reform

It looks like Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and the Democrats are going to settle for a "public option light." Read the last paragraph of the Politico article. The federal government will be able to bully private insurers.

And the Democrats' health care "trigger" could in fact be a trap door that leads to government-run health care.

Senate Democrats have reached a "broad agreement" on a health reform bill, Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday night — a plan that would replace the public option in the current Senate bill with a new national insurance plan offered by private insurers, and a chance for older Americans to "buy in" to Medicare.

Democrats on Tuesday night took a major step forward on a plan by agreeing to ask congressional scorekeepers to give them cost estimates on a possible compromise that would break the impasse over health reform in the Senate.

In doing so, Senate negotiators moved decisively away from including a government-run health insurance plan that would start on Day One in any final compromise, a major disappointment for the Democratic base but one that is likely to prove necessary to win over fiscally moderate senators.

Instead, Democrats are considering including a "trigger" that would allow a public plan to kick in – but only in the event that private insurers didn’t step up and offer policies for the new national health insurance plan, which seemed unlikely.

Will this compromise Illinois' joke of a senator, Roland Burris? The Rod Blagojevich-appointed Democrat says he will not vote for any health care bill that does not include government-run health care.

If this bill reaches the Senate floor, and Burris votes for it, then it is indeed a trap.

Technorati tags: Politics government Harry Reid health universal health care socialism obamacare Blagojevich Illinois Politics Illinois Democrats chicago senate Roland Burris