Health co-ops' fans like cost and care, but successful models still rare

A collection of little-known insurance cooperatives around the country is winning attention as being key to a possible health reform compromise in Washington. But while some of their practices have cut costs and serve as models for change, questions remain about their ability to transform American healthcare. Specialists said that their patient-controlled structure and nonprofit status are not what will ultimately prove most useful, but instead it is the way they pay doctors and care for patients that holds the most potential for savings.