As previously reported by CNN senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash and CNN senior White House correspondent Ed Henry, the so-called trigger option remains very much on the table.
Under a 'trigger option', a new government-run health care plan would only go into effect if insurance companies fail to meet certain affordability standards with their own plans.
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Sources expect the president to emphasize the message: If Congress passes something now, it will serve as a foundation to pass further reform in the future.
linkHmmm, Ed Henry is credible?
Anyway, if a trigger is designed as a fail-safe mechanism in the event that the insurance companies don't meet affordability standards, what if someone comes along and determines the insurers have met the goals, and the option never kicks in? How is that reform, and how does that serve to ensure that all Americans are covered and to lower costs and the deficit?
If advocates are certain the insurance companies will be unable to meet the objectives, triggering the public option, why the hell would anyone push this? It's like stalling the inevitable.
Updated to add video:
Obama to Meet with House Progressives Ahead of Wednesday Speech