Will a public option destroy private insurance companies?  The answer is an unequivocal NO.  Although many in Congress (advocating for insurance companies rather than their constituents) have made this claim, its abundantly clear that not only can the government effectively administer to this sort of program, but several "public options" already exist.

My "public option" is my university.  When I was applying to colleges, I wanted to go to New York University.  However, the tuition alone would have cost my family a jaw dropping 35k.  That is a huge burden on a middle class family with mortgage and car payments.  Since I am a resident of NYS, my tuition would come up as roughly 15k a year (room included).  Not only is that within my family's budget, but I do not feel that I am being shortchanged on my education either.  Admittedly, while NYU or Cornell may have slightly nicer facilities or better faculty, the government run, public option university is respectable in its own right and gives many students the opportunity to attend college; an opportunity they might have never had.

This is where my point lies.  State and City Universities have been run for decades without driving private schools into bankruptcy.  Some people can (and will) afford to go to private university and that is their choice.  There is no conflict with opening another options, especially since a few large corporations hold a monopoly on insurance.  A lack of competition within that industry has allowed for most of the abuse and inefficiency to occur.  Competition will keep the insurance companies honest and will by no means cause them to collapse.  We should all examine the U.S. and its extensive network of public schools before we are so quick to jump to the defense of insurance companies.  The insurance companies require no protection, they already have battalions of lawyers and lobbyists to do that for them.