Healthcare Industry Launches Ads Against Biden's Public Option

The Partnership for America’s Health Care Future launched two ads ahead of the GOP and the Democrat National Conventions, warning public officials not to adopt a government-run public option that could have dire consequences for the healthcare industry.

The Partnership launched two ads, “Time,” and “Build,” that will show how former Vice President Joe Biden’s healthcare plan, a public option, could jeopardize Americans’ health care.

“They make it sound great, but here’s what they don’t tell you: Your taxes would pay for a public option,” the narrator said in “Time” ad.

“Let’s build on what’s working, not start over,” the narrator said in the “Build” ad.

A spokesman for the ad noted that the ads would serve as part of a seven-figure nationwide effort to educate the public about the harmful effects of a public option.

“Instead of forcing Americans into a new government-controlled health insurance system that would demand Americans to pay more for worse care, in the new ad the Partnership advocates for building on what’s working where private coverage,” the Partnership wrote in their release on Friday.

Other political groups, such as the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), have launched attacks against Montana Gov. and Senate Democrat candidate Steve Bullock for supporting a public option, which the NRSC charged could close rural Montana hospitals.

A Guidehouse study conducted in 2019 found that as many as 55 percent of rural hospitals could become at risk for closure under a public option due to lower Medicare reimbursement rates under the Biden plan.

The narrator in the NRSC ad asked rhetorically, “What would this mean for Montana? It would force rural hospitals to close, threaten employer-provided health insurance, and increase payroll taxes by $2,000 on Montana workers.”