Frist and Dean on Health Care

Republican Bill Frist, former Senate majority leader, is a heart surgeon, lung surgeon, and heir to the biggest hospital company in the world.
On Friday, Bill Frist said what not a single Republican now sitting in Congress has said — that he would vote for emerging health care reform.
Today we’ll ask him why.
Democrat and doctor Howard Dean is an internist and champion of the “public option” missing from the latest Senate bill. We’ll ask where his support goes now.
This hour, On Point: Bill Frist, Howard Dean, and the showdown ahead on health care reform.
You can join the conversation. Tell us what you think — here on this page, on Twitter, and on Facebook.Guests:

Julie Rovner, health policy correspondent for NPR.

Bill Frist, former Republican Senate majority leader from Tennessee, served for 12 years in the U.S. Senate. A renowned surgeon, he practiced medicine for twenty years. His new book is "A Heart to Serve: The Passion to Bring Health, Hope, and Healing."

Howard Dean, former Governor of Vermont, former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and 2004 presidential candidate. He is also a medical doctor and a prominent voice in the health care debate. His most recent book is “Howard Dean’s Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform.”