Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid said he's close to formulating a health care bill that will pass the Senate, but the much-talked about public option may be history.

According to the New York Times:

Under the agreement, people ages 55 to 64 could "buy in" to Medicare. And a federal agency, the Office of Personnel Management, would negotiate with insurance companies to offer national health benefit plans, similar to those offered to federal employees, including members of Congress. If these private plans did not meet certain goals for making affordable coverage available to all Americans, Senate Democratic aides said, then the government itself would offer a new insurance plan, somewhat like the "public option" in the bill Mr. Reid unveiled three weeks ago.

According to the Washington Post, negotiations for an alternative to the public option would also place strict new regulations on health care companies, forcing them to spend 90 cents of every dollar collected on providing medical care for their customers.The public option is supposed to provide competition to private insurers, forcing them to lower rates. Some Democrats have said a government-run plan is necessary to truly reform our health care system.

Republicans have balked at the idea, saying it would drive private insurers out of business. Last month, the House passed a health care bill by a slim margin that had a public option but would force the government to negotiate with hospitals and doctors instead of just setting prices, like Medicare.

I think most people are not wedded to the idea of a public option if other reforms can guarantee that affordable health care is provided to more uncovered Americans. The question that Democrats should thoroughly examine, though, is whether the alternatives to a public option provide enough of a guarantee to meet that goal.

At the same time, President Obama needs a victory on this one. It could bolster his efforts to rein in other industries that don't have the best interests of Americans at heart. Now is the time to come to a resolution. According to a recent poll, the approval ratings for President Obama and the Democrats are beginning to slip.

President Obama's approval rating has fallen below 50 percent, which doesn't bode well for the upcoming midterm elections. According to the Associated Press:

Dropping below 50 percent is a warning sign of political peril if not corrected. Since 1962, presidents with approval ratings below 50 percent have lost an average of 41 seats in midterm House elections. That's precisely the number that would cost Democrats control of the House this time.

This may be the last best chance at some sort of real health care reform for another generation.