Paul Grady is correct in his op-ed, “Connecticut should focus on health value, not creating a state public option” (April 20), that rising health care costs are largely driven by rising prices for health care, but he is wrong when he states that the public option will not help put the brakes on those costs. The consolidation in Connecticut’s health care system has enabled the giant health systems like Yale and Hartford Health to raise prices with impunity.

The public option bill proposed by Comptroller Kevin Lembo and others will act as a counterbalance to the behemoth health providers and inject much needed competition into the health insurance marketplace.

The proposed legislation — SB 842 — will enable small employers, nonprofit organizations, and Taft-Hartley union plans to finally purchase good health insurance for their workers at a reasonable price. This is what the people of Connecticut need and deserve.

Dr. Stephen R. Smith, MPH

New London

Professor Emeritus of Family Medicine

Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University