Healthcare co-ops emerging as viable alternative

With prospects fading that the Senate will include a government-run insurance option in healthcare reform legislation, congressional Democrats and Republicans are sparring over a series of private regional cooperatives that advocates say could achieve the goals of a public plan without the potential for government interference. The key negotiators in the Senate are scheduled to meet by teleconference to discuss prospects for keeping a bipartisan health plan alive, which could hinge on the acceptability of co-ops to both sides.