I really like this part of the bill.

[Egnever]

(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—
5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish
6 a program to carry out the purposes of this section
7 to be known as the Consumer Operated and Ori8
ented Plan (CO-OP) program.
9 (2) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of the CO-OP
10 program to foster the creation of qualified nonprofit
11 health insurance issuers to offer qualified health
12 plans in the individual and small group markets in
13 the States in which the issuers are licensed to offer
14 such plans.
15

snip

STATES WITHOUT ISSUERS IN PRO22
GRAM.—If no health insurance issuer applies to
23 be a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer
24 within a State, the Secretary may use amounts
25 appropriated under this section for the award170
1 ing of grants to encourage the establishment of
2 a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer
3 within the State or the expansion of a qualified
4 nonprofit health insurance issuer from another
5 State to the State.

This bill pushes the states to include non profit insurers into the exchanges going so far as to help create them if they dont exist. It aint a public option but its pretty damn close.

[valerief]

1. If only non-profits were made available to ALL Americans, even

those who get health insurance subsidized by employers.

[Egnever]

2. Thats the point of this provision no?

It encourages the inclusion of non profits into the exchanges. Eventually we will all be getting our insurance through the exchanges be it through our employers or otherwise wont we?

[valerief]

3. I thought it said it was for individual and small group policies only. nt

[Egnever]

4. You are right it does.