FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

National Governors Association and National Academy of Medicine Identify Key Priority Areas and Proven Solutions for States to Improve the Value of Healthcare

New York, NY—A new online resource, titled “Health Care Transformation Resources for State Leaders,” was released today by the National Governors Association (NGA) to help states implement solutions to become more effective purchasers, regulators, and workforce developers in healthcare. The initiative, which was funded by the Peterson Center on Healthcare and carried out by NGA and the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), identifies promising state-based innovations to improve healthcare quality and lower costs.

The interactive online hub highlights specific and proven ways in which states have transformed their healthcare systems, such as leveraging data to improve healthcare performance; linking physical and behavioral health in the delivery of care; combating heroin and prescription drug abuse; improving rural health and workplace planning; and adopting new models to improve how healthcare is delivered and paid for. A series of case studies outline the steps policymakers took to implement reforms and the outcomes that resulted, including:

• Michigan’s use of data-driven approaches to reduce infant mortality rates by nearly 13 percent from 2012–2014;
• Virginia’s integration of primary care and behavioral health services for its uninsured population;
• Vermont’s increased access to substance abuse treatment to address rising rates of heroin and prescription drug abuse;
• Mississippi’s expansion of ‘telehealth’ services to serve its large rural population; and
• Oregon’s reduction of emergency department visits by 21 percent and related state spending by 20 percent through improved care coordination for Medicaid beneficiaries.

“Many solutions to improve the quality of healthcare and lower costs are effectively hidden in plain sight at the state level,” said Peterson Center on Healthcare Executive Director Jeffrey Selberg. “This exciting initiative identifies and highlights these innovations, a key step in the ultimate goal of spreading and scaling them as best practices and as a national standard. The efforts of the National Governors Association and the National Academy of Medicine have set us on a path to accomplish that goal.”

NGA, NAM and the Peterson Center on Healthcare developed the resource after a series of governor-sponsored healthcare events held in Alabama, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Governors convened public and private stakeholders to discuss common opportunities to improve healthcare outcomes and lower costs.

“Governors want to improve health care delivery across their states while simultaneously lowering costs, even with the strong budgetary pressures they face,” NGA Executive Director and CEO Scott Pattison said. “Through supporting collaborative efforts among agencies, communities, health advocates, academia, payers and providers, governors can steer action toward a common vision of a transformed health care system focused on outcomes.”

“Leadership at the state level provides an essential fulcrum for meaningful health progress,” said NAM President Victor Dzau. “At the National Academy of Medicine, we are committed to helping facilitate the cooperative engagement of state policy makers and health professionals as they work to identify common priorities and opportunities, share information, and develop collaborative agendas. And it is through creative state initiatives that lessons are learned about how to ensure that the pace toward better care, better value, and better health is quickened by the best evidence.”

For more information about the Peterson Center on Healthcare, visit petersonhealthcare.org.

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About the Peterson Center on Healthcare
The Peterson Center on Healthcare is a non-profit organization dedicated to making higher quality, more affordable healthcare a reality for all Americans. The organization is working to transform U.S. healthcare into a high-performance system by finding innovative solutions that improve quality and lower costs, and accelerating their adoption on a national scale. Established by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, the Center collaborates with stakeholders across the healthcare system and engages in grant-making, partnerships, and research.