Alternate plan as health option muddies debate

The White House has indicated that it could accept a nonprofit healthcare cooperative as an alternative to a new government insurance plan, but the co-op idea is so ill defined that no one knows exactly what it would look like or how effectively it would compete with commercial insurers, according to the New York Times. Under co-ops, the government would offer start-up money in loans and grants to help doctors, hospitals, businesses, and other groups form nonprofit cooperative networks to provide healthcare and coverage.