Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Feature Highlights Recent Blog Entries
"Blog Watch" offers readers a roundup of health policy-related blog posts.
The Altarum Institute's Online Health Policy Forum features a post from Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), in which he explains why he believes health reform is urgent and says, "For more than 50 years, I have fought for universal coverage, and there has been no better opportunity than now. I will not let this window slip by."
Michael Leavitt and Jeffrey Anderson on America Speak On call a public plan option a "Trojan horse" that is "designed to become most Americans' only option" for health insurance. Igor Volsky of the Center for American Progress Action Fund's Wonk Room disagrees, saying, "The public plan may have the advantage in administrative efficiency and setting rates, but the private plans will most certainly find a niche to fill."
Trudy Lieberman of the Columbia Journalism Review's Campaign Desk looks at grassroots organizing efforts by insurer WellPoint.
Jaan Sidorov of the Disease Management Care Blog discusses whether health insurers might react to some health reform regulations with mergers and acquisitions, which he says could create companies that are "too big to fail."
TIE of the Finance Buff offers a primer on Medicare Advantage as the second part of his series on Medicare.
Merton Bernstein on the Health Affairs Blog writes, "Why do the Obama medical care gurus, Senator Baucus and Senator Grassley, and the Congressional Budget Office exclude Medicare-for-all, although it would save far more than any rival plan? In large measure, that results from the propaganda war on single-payer."
Bob Laszewski of Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review says he believes a consensus is emerging that there will be no public-plan option similar to Medicare in health reform.
Greg Scandlen on John Goodman's Health Policy Blog looks at a Milliman study (.pdf) that estimated the rates at which Medicare and Medicaid underpay doctors and hospitals.
Joanne Kenen of the New America Foundation's New Health Dialogue discusses the findings of an NPR, Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health survey on the public's view of the health care delivery system.
Jonathan Cohn of the New Republic's The Treatment looks at speculation over whether Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Neb.) would support Democrats' comprehensive health care overhaul proposal.