Tom Fitzgerald at the Inquirer has a story today on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi not backing down from a demand for a public health insurance option. Pelosi joined Philly-area lawmakers in Philadelphia today.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said during a visit to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital today that a government-run insurance program must be in the final version of health-care reform, even as other Democratic leaders have suggested it could pass without the provision.

"No bill can pass the House of Representatives without a public option in it," Pelosi said, after touring the hospital emergency room.

