House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer said Tuesday he will try again to find a bipartisan approach to a health care overhaul by reaching out to a few Republican leaders who have said they agree with about 80 percent of the ideas House Democrats have outlined.

Hoyer, D-Md., said he will contact House Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia and Rep. Charles Boustany Jr. , R-La., a physician and Ways and Means Committee member who delivered the Republican response to President Obama’s health care speech to Congress two weeks ago. Both members have said in recent days that Republicans and Democrats agree on about 80 percent of a health care overhaul.

But the remaining 20 percent includes such major areas of disagreement as a public insurance option, a mandate that large employers provide health insurance to their workers and the taxes needed to subsidize insurance for those who cannot afford to purchase it.

“I’m going to reach out to a number of Republicans in the next day,” Hoyer told reporters. “I want to find out what that 80 percent is, because if we have 80 percent we ought to work on the other 20 percent.”

Cantor made the reference to 80 percent agreement between the parties at a health care policy forum Monday in Richmond, Va.

And Boustany has made several references to the points of accord. “I would venture to say that we agree on about 80 percent of the issues right now. It’s just a matter of hashing out those few areas where we disagree, but there’s really not been that kind of real discussion, and it needs to happen,” he said on MSNBC on Sept. 10.

Hoyer said he has spoken often with Rep. Roy Blunt , R-Mo., the former GOP whip who heads the House Republican Conference health care task force. But Hoyer contended that he has yet to hear “alternative suggestions” from the Republicans to the proposals made by Democrats.

Hoyer acknowledged that there are some limits to any compromise with Republicans. “We’re not talking about dropping the public option,” he said. And that public option, which Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Hoyer say they want in the bill they expect the House to pass in the next few weeks, is anathema to Republicans, who say such a plan would ultimately destroy private health insurance.