Two days before July 4, about two-dozen protesters gathered around the Health Insurance Commissioner’s office in Cranston last Thursday and rallied in support of a so-called “public option” health care plan.

“What do we want? Health care!” chanted the crowd.

The protesters, all closely affiliated with Ocean State Action—a progressive, labor union-backed group—argued that private health insurance has failed the poorest members of society.

“Private insurance has failed,” said Peter Asen, Ocean State Action’s Interim Executive Director.

In an ironic comparison, Asen equated the campaign to create a publicly financed health care plan, which would vastly increase the size of the government, to the 18th century American Revolutionaries who were fighting against what they considered to be an overly large, aggressive and tyrannical government.

In America, health care comes down to status and skin color, Asen said.

“The health care you have is correlated to the color of your skin and your status in society,” Asen said.

Asen said that while the costs of private insurance aren’t necessarily taxes, they’ve become every bit as burdensome.

“Most Rhode Islanders pay more in health insurance than they do in income taxes,” said Asen.

Cheryl Cornell, a struggling Rhode Island single mother, spoke about the crippling costs of health care. Cornell, who has a son with a serious asthmatic condition, has been forced to ration his health care because she couldn’t afford the high co-pays on asthma medication.

Despite a weak insurance plan, private insurance was still consuming upwards of 25 percent of her income.

“Private insurance failed me and my family. It wasn’t geared toward helping us, it was geared toward making the insurance company money,” said Cornell.

Without the need to earn a profit, the public option would be able to cut down on administration costs and ultimately cut the costs of health insurance, argue supporters.

But those who fear the government control say the public plan will use its unlimited purchasing power and ability to print its own money to drive out private insurers. With private insurers out of the picture, the government-run plan will ultimately begin to ration care, or increase their enrollment fees.

A long complaint against the two current government funded plans—Medicare and Medicaid—is that they reimburse costs at far lower rates than private insurance plans. That, in turn, forces private insurers to pick up the costs.

Asen, when asked by reporters what assurances the public would have that the new government run plan would adequately reimburse the health care providers, said that New York Senator Charles Schumer has promised to make sure the public plan will reimburse providers fairly so as not to pass the costs onto private insurance.

But the “trust me” assurance isn’t likely going to carry much water with frustrated conservatives who fear government control could lead to rationing.

Meanwhile, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island removed its rate hike request that was before the Health Insurance Commissioner one day after the press conference. The company removed the rate hike request after the commissioner assured the company that it could increase rates by 9 percent for large groups (50 employees or more) and 7 percent for small groups (under 50 employees) without any additional approval.

But the company said that even that rate hike wouldn’t be sufficient.

“It’s important to note that these rates are inadequate and will create a financial loss of more than $30 million for our company over the next six months,” said James E. Purcell, president and CEO of Blue Cross. “This shortfall cannot go un-addressed, especially in light of rising medical costs and increased utilization of services, which are outpacing our rates. As a result, we will have no choice but to seek another increase before the end of the year, which underscores the urgency of reforming the current health care system.”

Apparently, liberal activists aren’t the only groups looking for national health care reform.