HEALTH CARE REFORM BLOG
ACS CAN Convenes Leading Experts to Discuss Improving Quality of Health Care
ACS CAN brought together some of the nation’s leading health care experts in Washington, D.C. for a groundbreaking event to examine how to ensure that people with cancer and other life-threatening chronic diseases receive quality health care.
ACS CAN’s first-ever National Forum on the Future of Health Care, held at the National Press Club in downtown Washington, convened top officials from federal and state government, the health care industry, non-profit organizations, academia, and the media to take a detailed look at provisions of the Affordable Care Act that require all health plans to offer patients a minimum standard of benefits beginning in 2014.
The “essential health benefits” have the potential to give patients the security of knowing that their health plan will cover proven methods to prevent cancer and the treatments and follow-up care needed to battle the disease. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released guidance to states in December on defining essential benefits. But HHS also said it would eventually issue a formal regulation that could provide more information.
Many questions need to be answered before an essential benefits package goes into effect, such as what health care services will be included, how essential benefits could improve care while containing costs, what role states have in defining essential benefits for their citizens, and how to ensure that all patients nationwide access basic care and innovations that are helping to save lives.
These issues and many others were discussed during a day-long conference featuring leading health care experts including:
- Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts
- Michael Leavitt, former governor of Utah and former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- John Seffrin, chief executive officer of ACS CAN and the American Cancer Society
ACS CAN strongly supported the essential benefits requirement in the Affordable Care Act to ensure that cancer patients and survivors have access to lifesaving care. This discussion will inform ACS CAN and the public on how to ensure the success of the essential benefits package for patients nationwide.
All of the day’s sessions and speakers are listed on the conference agenda.
Resources:
- ACS CAN fact sheet on essential health benefits
- Summary of HHS bulletin on essential benefits (December 2011)
- ACS CAN media statement in response to the bulletin (December 2011) and filed comments on the bulletin (January 2012)
- Prepared remarks by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
- Prepared remarks by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick
Media Coverage:
*Note: Many of these articles require subscriptions to their publications
Congressional Quarterly: State Insurance Commissioners: Essential Benefits May Be More Uniform Over Time
Modern Healthcare: Experts Suggest Priorities for Essential Benefits
Protecting Funding for Cancer Prevention
ACS CAN was back walking the halls of Congress to protect an important health program.
Along with representatives from 40 organizations, ACS CAN met with more than 70 U.S. Representatives and Senators to discuss the importance of prevention in the fight against cancer. We made sure that officials knew that through proven ways to prevent cancer and detect it early, we can prevent roughly half of all cancer deaths.
The ask was clear – protect funding for the Prevention and Public Health Fund. The fund, a new initiative created by the Affordable Care Act, provides an expanded and sustained national investment in prevention and public health programs to improve health and help restrain health care costs in communities across the country. However, the fund has been threatened numerous times by the White House and Congress who are looking to reduce or even eliminate it.
In 2009, ACS CAN volunteers worked hard convincing Congress to establish this fund. Now, we must protect this historic investment and ensure that it continues to support key programs and policy changes that prevent cancer and save lives.
If you’re ready to be involved in our work to make cancer a national priority, see how you can help in 2012. Go to www.acscan.org/2012.
Affordable Care Act Helps Insure 2.5 Million Young Adults
Patient protections in the Affordable Care Act are already benefiting young adults. A recent report showed a larger than expected 14% increase in insurance coverage for individuals between the ages of 19 and 25. This means that more than 2.5 million young adults have been able to either keep their health insurance or gain access to it thanks to the Affordable Care Act and a provision allowing individuals to stay on their parents health insurance up to age 26.
eHealth Initiative Conference to Feature Technology’s Impact on Health Care Delivery
In early January, the American Cancer Society, the charitable affiliate of ACS CAN, will be presenting at an innovative conference focused on improving the quality of life of patients through the increased integration of health information technology.
The conference – The eHealth Initiative 10th Annual Conference on Cancer, Diabetes and Heart Disease: Improving Care Through eHealth – will take place in Washington, DC.
Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the American Cancer Society, will be presenting about the impact technology can have on patient care.
Other speakers and panelists will share real examples of how technology, social media and analytics are making life better for patients and clinicians.
To learn more about the conference, visit its registration site.
Health Care and You Groups Tour the Nation on the Radio Waves
Members of the Health Care and You coalition, a partnership formed by the nation’s leading organizations that represent consumers, patients, physicians, nurses, hospitals and pharmacists, are conducting a national radio tour to inform consumers about the new website HealthCareAndYou.org. Representatives from AARP, ACS CAN and Catholic Health Association (CHA) will speak to national radio stations and stations in the top markets across the country about the Affordable Care Act and the value of this website for all Americans.
The website is a new resource with easy-to-understand, unbiased information designed to help individuals make smart health care decisions for themselves and their families. Please see our previous blog update for more information about coalition and the launch of the website.
