My letter to the editor...

This is a draft of a soon to be submitted letter to the editor. Let me know what you think...

Senator Conrad has been hailing his co-op plan as an alternative to the government run public option. He has stated that his plan is “consumer-controlled, not government run.” When has anything that came out of the Senate with federal dollars attached to it not been in some way government controlled? Co-operatives do not need federal money or influence to start up. And even if the co-ops are not technically government run, they are surely government financed. The government would grant the co-operatives up to six billion dollars in start up money. I would hope that the senator has learned by now that when federal dollars are in play, the government always has some form of control.

If health insurance co-operatives are such a good idea then states and communities can form them. Or for that matter, a group of states could get together and form such a partnership. That would be a smart, federalist approach to the health insurance question in America. Instead, creating government backed health care co-operatives pretends to champion consumer choice and federalism, but in the end does none of that.

The federal government used a co-op model to address the “unfair” mortgage practices of banks. This approach gave birth to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and we all know how well that worked out. So in reality, Senator Conrad’s plan will create yet another government financed entity that will in the future be “too big to fail.” Can Senator Conrad guarantee his constituents that if the co-ops underperform the taxpayer will not bail them out?

Senator Conrad, go back to Washington and think of a plan that will truly add choice and competition for American citizens. Federally backed co-operatives will not be free from government influence, so stop pretending that they will be.