Timeline

Obama proposes the need for a public option.

• 7/09: Bill is passed by Senate Health Committee which includes a public option (three House committees pass bills with a public option).
• 8/16/09: Facing a month of tough criticism and angry citizens in town hall meetings, President Obama appears to back away from his commitment to the public option. As quoted in the NY Times: “The public option, whether we have it or we don’t have it, is not the entirety of health care reform. This is just one sliver of it, one aspect of it.”
• 9/09/09: President Obama gives a speech to a joint session of Congress and reaffirms his commitment to a public plan. "I have no interest in putting insurance companies out of business," he says, "Let me be clear – [the public option] would only be an option for those who don't have insurance."
• 10/13/2009: Olympia Snowe is the only Republican member of the Senate Finance Committee to vote for a health care bill crafted by committee chairman Max Baucus. The bill does not appear to contain a public option. Ms. Snowe has previously “opposed amendments to create a government insurance plan and would continue to do so” (according to the NY Times). But she has said that she is “open to a compromise under which a public plan could be “triggered” in states where people could not otherwise find affordable insurance.” The Times explains that “With its vote Tuesday, the Finance Committee became the fifth — and final — Congressional panel to approve a sweeping health care bill. The action will now move to the floors of the House and the Senate, where the health care measures still face significant hurdles.”
• 10/22/09: Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, is leaning toward including a government-run insurance plan in a health care bill he will soon take to the Senate floor.
• 11/7/09: The Affordable Health Care for America Act passes the House of Representatives (220-215). One Republican voted for the bill and 39 democrats voted against it. According to the NY Times, this bill would require most Americans to obtain health insurance or face penalties and would require most employers to provide coverage or pay a tax penalty of up to 8 percent of their payroll. The bill would significantly expand Medicaid and would offer subsidies to help moderate-income people buy insurance from private companies or from a government insurance plan. It would also set up a national insurance exchange where people could shop for coverage. The bill has the endorsement of the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
• 11/18/2009: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid proposes a health care bill which would cost $849 billion over 10 years. The bill contains a public option, but includes a provision which would allow states to opt out, should they choose to.