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Although most of the recent discussions have been focused on expanding access to affordable health care, not enough attention has been paid to the management, processes, and staffing changes that  need to be involved in the implementation process.

From Rx for Reform

In response to a question posted on the National Journal’s Health Care Expert Blog, Ralph Neas, President and CEO of the NCHC Action Fund, discussed the need to hold Congress and stakeholders accountable for curtailing the growth rate of national health care expenditures.

NCHC Action Fund President and CEO, Ralph G. Neas, calls for an insurance policy for health care reform. 

Noting that last spring, leaders of the health care industry, including representatives from PhARMA, America's Health Insurance Plans, the American Medical Association and American Hospital Association, met with President Obama and pledged to him and the American people that they would decrease the annual rate of cost increases by 1.5 percentage points to save $2 trillion or more over the next decade. Neas said the commitment that industry leaders made to the President and the American public "should be more than a photo op, press statement and promise." Citing Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus' piece about legislative cost containment efforts and needing a fail-safe mechanism to ensure that the rate of health care inflation is slowed, Neas urged that industry pledges to the President and the American people to control the growth of national health expenditures be codified and made enforceable as part of health reform.

 "Only enactment of a "failsafe" amendment will provide the American people with an insurance policy that health care reform will lower premiums and make quality care and coverage affordable for all," he said.

The National Coalition on Health Care's recommendations, based upon the consensus view of 85 member organizations, to make the system less complex, reduce overly high prices, and create a truly competitive health care marketplace. The goal of the paper is to augment the NCHC Principles and Specifications with a more detailed and selective set of policy recommendations on cost containment and quality improvement.

From Facts & Research

Small Business Majority, an NCHC partner, and the Center for American Progress developed a report, SHOPping Around: Setting up Health Care Exchanges for Small Businesses: A Roadmap. The report provides state legislators with both the necessary information and toolkit for establishing competitive health insurance exchanges for small businesses.

Knowing what’s in the Affordable Care Act can help you make smart health care decisions for you and your family. Some changes are happening now. Others are set to take place in 2014. Find out what’s happening in your state and what the law means for you.

The Pew Charitable Trusts has released a report entitled Two Kinds of Dental Shortages Fuel One Major Access Problem. The report underlines the lack of access children have to basic, preventive, dental care.