Washington, D.C. –(ENEWSPF)–September 4, 2014. Although growth in health care spending has slowed dramatically in recent years, leading health care experts agree in a report released today that additional policies will be needed to sustain the slowdown. The Center for American Progress, in conjunction with several current state officials from Arkansas, Maryland, and Massachusetts, outline additional reforms aimed at controlling health care costs.
The report proposes an approach known as the “Accountable Care States” model that will keep costs down by giving states flexibility and incentives to control costs. A state that designates itself an Accountable Care State will be accountable for health care costs, quality of care, and access to care with sizable financial rewards for keeping overall costs low.
“Although recent policies contributed to the slowdown in the growth of health care costs, there is still the possibility that growth could increase and continue to crowd out spending in household and government budgets,” said Neera Tanden, CAP President and co-author of the report. “The Accountable Care States model that we are proposing gives states the ability to implement policies that control costs and the federal government the ability to create incentives for states to do so. This proposal builds on the unique abilities of both state and federal governments to create a cost-control model that works for every household and statehouse.”
Using Congressional Budget Office, or CBO, data, the report estimates that if even half of the states participate, the Accountable Care States model would yield $1.7 trillion in savings on total health care spending over 10 years, $350 billion of which would accrue to the federal government.
Download the report: PDF
Download introduction & summary: PDF
Read it in your browser: Scribd
Source: http://www.americanprogress.org
