Expanding coverage to the uninsured should be Congress’ top priority in the next five years, according to 250 opinion leaders in health policy and innovators in healthcare delivery and finance who were polled for the Commonwealth Fund Health Care Opinion Leaders Survey. Respondents from the provider side and government felt that it was possible to reduce the number of Americans without insurance from 18% to 5% in 10 years. One proposed solution to expand coverage was to allow individuals and small businesses to buy insurance from the Federal Employees Health Benefits program.
The second priority for Congress is to improve the quality and safety of healthcare with a target of increasing the number of people who receive recommended care from one-half to three-fourths. Some respondents felt information technology and provider incentives were the keys to improving care while others focused on the use of evidence-based guidelines. Third on Congress’ list, according to the respondents, was to enact reforms to moderate the rising cost of medical care for the nation, although none were optimistic that the cost of health care as a percentage of GDP will be reduced from where it is now.
