#95 Planet Money: Defending the Public Option

Meet Jacob Hacker, the father of the "public option." Hacker, a Yale political science professor, introduced the notion of the federal government offering a health insurance plan that would compete with ones from private companies.

President Obama calls the public option a means of pressuring private insurers to keep policies affordable, while critics say it would put them at an unfair disadvantage.

Now Hacker takes a turn defending his big idea, saying that a public plan would cost less to run and be able to bargain for better prices.