Forums

NCHC Forums bring together thought leaders, policymakers and stakeholders for timely public discussions about the future of America’s health system. The views expressed by the speakers are their own and do not reflect the positions of the National Coalition on Health Care or NCHC Action Fund.

All Upcoming 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

HEALTH POLICY AFTER THE SGR: WHAT’S POSSIBLE IN VALUE-BASED PAYMENT AND BENEFITS?

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM Capitol Visitors Center, SVC-203

SPEAKERS

Shaun Frost, MD, Associate Medical Director for Care Delivery System, HealthPartners Health Plan: Value Based Insurance Design: Key Concepts and their Application at HealthPartners Health Insurance Plan

William Kramer, MBA, Executive Director for National Health Policy, Pacific Business Group on Health: Health Policy after the SGR: Moving Towards Value-Based Payments and Benefits

Mara McDermott, JD, MPH, Director of Federal Affairs, CAPG: Post-SGR Opportunities for Value-Based Healthcare Delivery

SUMMARY

“If there’s no SGR, what will we do all day?” This facetious quip has long brought smiles to the faces of advocates and Hill staff. But if Congress does manage to end the annual “doc fix” ritual, the work of reforming health care reimbursement and benefits is only just beginning. Recently announced goals, like driving 50% of traditional Medicare reimbursement through alternative payment models and basing 75% of private-sector payment arrangements on value, seem miles off.

To help map out a route toward achieving these goals, NCHC has brought together panelists with two specific qualifications. First, the private-sector physician groups, health plans and employers have each achieved real-world savings and care improvement, through new models of provider reimbursement and benefit design. Second, they each have ideas about what policymakers can do to bring those successes to scale—after the SGR.

BENDING THE HEALTH CARE COST CURVE: THE ROLE OF INVESTMENTS IN PREVENTION

2:30 PM – 4:00 PMRayburn House Office Building, Room 2226

SPEAKERS

David Dobbins, Chief Operating Officer, Legacy: Tobacco and Smoking: Progress and Challenge in Disease Prevention

Rich Hamburg, Deputy Director, Trust for America’s Health: Bending the Health Care Cost Curve: The Role of Investments in Prevention

Chris Hansen, President, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network: Bending the Health Care Cost Curve: The Role of Investments in Prevention

SUMMARY

Experts attribute 75% to 90% of America’s $2.7 trillion health care spending to largely preventable chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, asthma, cancer, and arthritis. Yet our policy debates and budget choices, centered on our expensive“sick” care system, shortchange the investments needed curb the growing cost prevalence of chronic disease. As leaders with organizations nationally recognized in the areas of tobacco use, community prevention, and cancer, respectively, our speakers will outline successful strategies in the battle against chronic disease and explore how to better target federal spending to expand those successes.

MEDICARE CLIFF: WHO’S IMPACTED BY PROJECTED 52% JUMP IN MEDICARE PREMIUMS? WILL WASHINGTON DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?

9:00 AM – 10:30 AMRayburn House Office Building, Room B-318

SPEAKERS

Jane Cheshire Gilbert, Director of Retiree Health Care, Kentucky Teacher’s Retirement System: Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System

Tricia Neuman, Senior Vice President and Director of Program on Medicare Policy and Project on Medicare’s Future, Kaiser Family Foundation:  Medicare Part B Premium and Deductible: What’s in Store for 2016?

Andrew Scholnick, Senior Legislative Representative, AARP:  Impact of Medicare Part B Increases on Beneficiaries

Shannon McMahon, Deputy Secretary for Health Care Financing, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene:  View from Maryland: Impact of Medicare Part B Premium Increases

SUMMARY

Can Congress or the administration stop a 52% jump in medicare Part B premiums and deductibles? If initial projects from the Medicare Trustees’ Report bear out, millions of Medicare beneficiaries could be impacted by Part B premium and deductible increases of up to 52%. Our distinguished panel of experts and advocates will identify who could be affected, explore the roots of this problem current statute and health care spending and explain the impact of this potential cost-shift on family finances and state budgets.

TRANSFORMING PRIMARY CARE: SCALING UP SUCCESSFUL MEDICAL HOME PROGRAMS

3:00 PM – 4:30 PMDirksen Senate Office Building, Room G-11

SPEAKERS

Margaret E. O’Kane, President, National Committee on Quality Assurance: Advancing Patient-Centered Medical Homes (PCMH)

Shawn Martin, Senior Vice President, Advocacy, Practice Advancement, and Policy, American Academy of Family Physicians: Scaling Up Successful Medical Home Programs

K. Eric De Jonge, MD, Director of Geriatrics, MedStar Washington Hospital Center: Independence at Home—the Case for National Access

SUMMARY

Are advanced medical home models the key to health care transformation? Patient-centered medical homes, which represent a team based approach to primary care, have long promised to improve care and value. And from private initiatives and federal demonstrations like the Independence at Home Practice Demonstration and Comprehensive Primary Care initiative, evidence is building that this promise can be realized. At this forum, our speakers will outline how federal policy can build on these successes, bringing superior primary care within reach for millions while holding down health care costs.