In healthcare news, several Democratic lawmakers have expressed alarm over proposals to abandon plans to create a government-run insurance option. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and others defended the public insurance plan, saying it is essential to keep the private health insurance companies honest. Democratic Congress member Jan Schakowksy of Illinois said she saw no credible alternative to a public option. Schakowksy said, “The insurance industry would be absolutely giddy to have a mandate that everybody have health insurance without any real competition.” Meanwhile, many questions remain unanswered about the proposed creation of healthcare cooperatives instead of the government-run insurance option. In 2000, a report by the US General Accounting Office found that the potential for cooperatives to reduce overall health insurance premiums is limited, in part because they lack sufficient leverage as a result of their limited market share.