What Health Reform Plan??

The Obama administration is working in overdrive to create a health reform package that could possibly be passed this summer. That is the headline we are all reading. The challenge, among many, is "what exactly is the proposed plan?"Like you, I am very concerned that the real work is being done in the basement of the White House by a very small number of non elected leaders. Sure, the press has been pretty good to date with a "down payment" on reform via the ARRA and lots of talk about the benefits of the infusion for information technology. However, the actual proposed legislation is leaking out in bits and pieces as the various interest groups inside the Beltway try hard to get their hands on real information. I hope we keep our eye on the four pillars of reform---create value, insure everyone, change the payment system and promote coordination. The pillars represent real reform, everything else is tinkering around the edges. At the Jefferson School of Population Health we are tracking these developments carefully but we need your help too. We must continue to press for transparency here and we must make sure that the four pillars are embodied in any legislative proposal. I am interested in your views too. DAVID NASH