Joe Biden’s election brought a new optimism that a public health insurance option could become a reality. But while the public option, a government-run insurance plan that competes with private insurers, seems to be off the table at the federal level, Nevada lawmakers are pushing to pass their own version before the end of their legislative session.

Nevada would become just the second state with a public option, after Washington implemented its own version of the proposal this year. The Democrat-controlled legislature is racing against the clock — the legislative session ends on June 1 — but the legislation is already moving through Senate committees.

“Now is the time to act,” Nevada Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro told me in a recent interview. “This really is designed to be a very reasonable approach to developing another option for folks. It’s not looking to upend the entire system. There are people who are unserved by this system. How do we serve those individuals?”