Worried Lauer Pushes Howard Dean from the Left on Health Care Reform

NBC's Matt Lauer opened Monday's "Today" show worrying about the possible loss of a public option in Barack Obama's health care reform as he teased viewers at the start of the show: "Reining it in. As President Obama and his family tour the wild west, signs he may drop a key part of his health plan. Is he bowing to pressure from the Republicans and those shouters at town hall meetings?" Later on in the show Lauer pressed Howard Dean from the left, as the "Today" co-host asked the former Democrat Vermont Governor "Without the public option could you support reform?" and pried Dean about his concern that Obama would "compromise further than you'd like him to compromise?"

Lauer began the interview by defining the public option in the most favorable terms possible, terms the former DNC chair found quite acceptable:

MATT LAUER: Let, let's start by making sure people understand exactly what we're talking about when we say this public option. This is a government-run insurance agency that would give people greater choice, some say break the monopoly held by the private insurers and, thus, drive down costs. Is that fair?

HOWARD DEAN: It is fair. And the best way to think about it is to think about it, is to think of it as Medicare or the Veterans Administration. These are two very good health care programs that exist already. They've been around for a long, long time. That's what we'd like to offer the public.

LAUER: Alright so now that we've done our job and defined it and described it, is it dead?

The following segment was aired on the August 17 "Today" show:

MATT LAUER: Howard Dean is the former governor of Vermont and former head of the Democratic National Committee. He made health care the centerpiece of his 2004 presidential campaign and he's authored a book on the topic, Howard Dean's Prescription for Real Health Care Reform. Governor good to see you. Good morning.

[On screen headline: "Doctor Dean, Is Obama Altering His Health Care Plan?"]

HOWARD DEAN: Matt, thanks for having me on.

LAUER: Let, let's start by making sure people understand exactly what we're talking about when we say this public option. This is a government-run insurance agency that would give people greater choice, some say break the monopoly held by the private insurers and, thus, drive down costs. Is that fair?

DEAN: It is fair. And the best way to think about it is to think about it, is to think of it as Medicare or the Veterans Administration. These are two very good health care programs that exist already. They've been around for a long, long time. That's what we'd like to offer the public.

LAUER: Alright so now that we've done our job and defined it and described it, is it dead?

DEAN: No. In fact, you really can't do health care reform without it. The health insurance companies have really put enormous pressure on both patients and doctors over the years. People are getting, losing their health insurance, can't get it back again if they have a pre-existing condition. Sometimes they even get kicked off their health insurance because they've become sick. What's going on in the health insurance industry is very much like what was going on, in my view, on Wall Street over the last eight years. People just basically taking money out of your pockets and putting it in theirs. None of that money goes to health care. And it's one, one of the reasons our, our insurance, I mean our health insurance industry is so inefficient.

LAUER: But I say is it dead, because you're listening, your listening to what the President and administration officials are saying over the past couple of days. Let me give you a contrast. Here's the President a month ago talking about reform. He says, "As I've said before, that one of the best ways to bring down costs, provide more choices and assure quality is a public option that will force the insurance companies to compete and keep them honest." Here's the President just three days ago, Quote, "All I'm saying is, though, that the public option, whether we have it or not, we don't have it, is not the entirety of health care reform. This is just one sliver of it. One aspect of it." Boy, you disagree with that, don't you?

DEAN: It well, it is the entirety of health care reform. It's not the entirety of insurance reform. And there are some things we did up here a long time ago in Vermont that the President wants to do and should do. But we shouldn't spend $60 billion a year subsidizing the health insurance industry. They don't need it. And the public option is a way of avoiding that. And the nice thing about the public option is it gives the public a choice. It's the public option. that is, you can choose what you have if you like it, or you can choose something different that can follow you everywhere you go. You can't be turned down, it doesn't cost more if you're sick than it does if you're healthy. And that's the public option.

LAUER: Yeah but, but without the public option could you support reform, Governor, or would you tell the President it's not worth spending?

DEAN: No...

LAUER: Go ahead.

DEAN: That's right. It's not worth spending the money. Just go ahead and do the insurance reform. That doesn't cost anything. We did that here. It's very, very successful, making them, making behave better but it won't get anybody else, many people insured. You're not gonna have real reform without some kind of public option, that's pretty clear.

LAUER: And do you think the President understands that or might he compromise further than you'd like him to compromise?

DEAN: Well, you know, this is a very interesting, what they would call in Japan a kabuki dance. Everybody has their role. We got to get this thing through the Senate. A lot of agonizing. The Senate's not back in session for another three weeks. When they get back in session then I think you'll see real movement. It's, honestly, Matt it's my judgment that what's gonna happen in the end is the Republicans are gonna not vote, have a single vote for this, no matter what the Democrats try to concede. And everybody is going to understand if you're gonna do this, you might as well do it right and the public option will be in the bill when the President signs it in December.

LAUER: So all the efforts for a bipartisan bill will, will go by the wayside anyway.

DEAN: Well I don't think. Yeah, I don't think the Republicans are interested. In order to have a bipartisan bill you got to have both sides interested.

LAUER: Exactly.

DEAN: And they're clearly not, judging what's going on in the last week or so.

LAUER: Governor Howard Dean. Governor, always good to see you, thanks very much.

DEAN: Thanks for having me again.