Newt Gingrich: “I would love to see the Clinton plan change so dramatically that we are talking about private health insurance and we…”

“I would love to see the Clinton plan change so dramatically that we are talking about private health insurance and we are giving up the States that have single-payer and giving up the Government's mandatory allowances. But if you would be willing to back off from the Clinton plan and approach the issue of private insurance, I can assure you, just speaking for myself--and I can't speak for my good colleagues--but for myself I absolutely want to see that every American has coverage. I said in Annapolis I believe we should do everything we can to get coverage. But I would make this point to my friend: When you say to us the only way--and by the way, you are the first Democrat I have heard who has admitted that there are Republican plans which get us to universal coverage, that there are Republican alternatives that do not have a national health board, do not have a mandatory Government bureaucratic alliance, do not require the Clinton multiple-page complexity but in fact get to universal coverage. I appreciate your recognition of the Republican contribution. We would be delighted to work in a bipartisan manner to try to write a genuine free-market bill with personal responsibility and with families having a real choice which sought to get every single American an opportunity to buy health insurance. I would be glad to start that tomorrow.”