Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Feature Highlights Recent Blog Entries

While mainstream news coverage is still a primary source of information for the latest in policy debates and the health care marketplace, online blogs have become a significant part of the media landscape, often presenting new perspectives on policy issues and drawing attention to under-reported topics. To provide complete coverage of health policy issues, the Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report offers readers a window into the world of blogs in a roundup of health policy-related blog posts. "Blog Watch," published on Tuesdays and Fridays, tracks a wide range of blogs, providing a brief description and relevant links for highlighted posts.

The American Prospect's Ezra Klein discusses the lack of awareness about health care costs in the U.S., saying that "if Americans were as viscerally aware of the punishing rate and impact of health spending as they are over hikes at the pump, anger over health care inflation would make the discontent over energy costs look mild."

Insure Blog's Bob Vineyard discusses problems with the administration of the Social Security Disability Income program and envisions the federal government administering health insurance for the uninsured in a similar way.

Maggie Mahar on the Health Care Blog responds to a post by Brian Klepper, in which he argued that lobbyists and business interests prevent health reform. Mahar says voters still have influence and "legislators are going to have to weigh the power of the vote against the power of the lobbyists' dollar."

Amber Sparks on the Health Care for America Now Blog writes that U.S. workers are "doing the heavy lifting on health care" and that "taking health care off the bargaining table" would give workers "more leverage to bargain for higher wages, a secure retirement, and other increased benefits."

Michael Miller of Health Care Policy and Communications Blog discusses misconceptions about the composition of health spending, noting some physicians believe pharmaceuticals make up the largest share when actually outpatient prescription drugs account about 10% to 11% of health care spending and hospital services account for the greatest proportion at 31%.

Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review's Bob Laszewski questions whether either presidential candidate can finance the short-term costs of health reform considering federal spending and the size of the federal deficit.

Joanne Kenen from the New America Foundation's New Health Dialogue blogs about her interview with AARP's policy director John Rother. Rother said that compared with the early 1990s, "cost, delivery and coverage debates are more closely entwined," and that health reform efforts "can't afford to let the perfect be the enemy of the good."

John Geyman on Physicians for a National Health Program's blog discusses Starbucks' financial troubles, some of which can be attributed to its "generous" health insurance benefits, and recommends a single-payer national health insurance system, saying that it "will not solve all of the problems now being confronted by Starbucks and other U. S. employers, but will go a long way to level the playing field in a global economy."

Joe Mantone from the Wall Street Journal's Health Blog discusses how Revolution Health "is still struggling to find its niche" and is exploring a sale or merger.