The Senate will consider several versions of a government-run public health insurance option in the chamber's upcoming debate on a health care bill, a Democratic senator predicted Sunday.
"I think what we're going to end up with is having votes on a number of choices," Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri told the ABC program "This Week."
According to McCaskill, the alternatives would include giving states the ability to opt out of a not-for-profit public option, or reversing that dynamic by allowing states the choice of opting in to such a program.
Another alternative would be the so-called "trigger mechanism," McCaskill said. That idea - batted around in Congress for weeks - would mandate a public option in the future if specific thresholds for expanded coverage and lower costs go unmet by a certain time.
The goal is to come up with a plan that can overcome a filibuster in the chamber, said McCaskill, who supports including a public option in the health care bill.
"I'd be less than honest if I didn't say all of us were concerned about making sure we get the votes to move forward," McCaskill said. "But I remain pretty optimistic."
On the same program, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky reaffirmed his party's unanimous opposition to a public option.
"I think 100 percent of Republicans have indicated they don't think having the government in the insurance business is a good idea," McConnell said.
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