Writer: Rural needs public option in health reform

In the debate about health reform, which is actually about health-insurance reform, perhaps the most controversial and discussed point has been the "public option," a way to buy into government-run coverage like Medicare. Congress is moving away from the idea, perhaps toward non-profit insurance cooperatives, but some sort of public option is needed for rural areas, Jon Bailey writes for the Nebraska-based Center for Rural Affairs.

"Nearly three-quarters of the rural uninsured own or work in small businesses, and cost/affordability is by far the most cited reason for being uninsured," Bailey writes. "The availability of affordable and quality health insurance is the primary barrier to entrepreneurship – the most effective rural development strategy – reaching its potential for rural people and rural communities. Most drafts of proposed health care reform bills in Congress contain individual and business mandates to carry or provide health insurance; such mandates – if they depend on the current health insurance system that does not work well for many rural people as the only health insurance option – are unlikely to address unique rural challenges."

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