9. Hospital Spending per Discharge, 2009
Adjusted for Differences in Cost of Living
18,142
13,483 13,244
11,112 10,875
10,441
9,870
8,350
7,160
6,222
5,204 5,072
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
14,000
16,000
18,000
20,000
US* CAN* NETH DEN SWIZ NOR** SWE AUS* NZ* OECD
Median
FR GER
Dollars
* 2008.
** 2007.
Source: OECD Health Data 2011 (Nov. 2011).
10. WHY ARE US HEALTHCARE COSTS
SO HIGH?
ď HIGHER PRICES FOR HEALTH CARE
GOODS AND SERVICES
ď ADMINISTRATIVE OVERHEAD
ď HIGH UTILIZATION OF TECHNOLOGY
ď LEGAL CLIMATE AND DEFENSIVE
MEDICINE
11. DRUG COSTS
ď More than $280 billion will be spent this
year on prescription drugs in the U.S. If
we paid what other countries did for the
same products, we would save about $94
billion a year.
12. ď Gerard Anderson, a health care economist
at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of
Public Health, says is the obvious and only
issue: âAll the prices are too damn high.â
14. Cumulative Increases in Health Insurance
Premiums, Workersâ Contributions to
Premiums, Inflation, and Workersâ Earnings, 1999-2012
Source: Kaiser/HRET Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits, 1999-2012. Bureau of Labor
Statistics, Consumer Price Index, U.S. City Average of Annual Inflation (April to April), 1999-2012; Bureau of Labor
Statistics, Seasonally Adjusted Data from the Current Employment Statistics Survey, 1999-2012 (April to April).
15. Average Annual Worker and Employer
Contributions to Premiums and Total Premiums
for Family Coverage
Source: Kaiser/HRET Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits, 2002-
2012.
16. Proportion Of Nonelderly Adults Who Delayed Care Because Of Cost, By Coverage
Status, 2000â10.
Kenney G M et al. Health Aff 2012;31:899-908
Š2012 by Project HOPE - The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.
18. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
48
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, availableat: http://www.census.gov,
accessed on September13, 2011; Kaiser FamilyFoundation,availableat:
http://www.kff.org/medicare/h08_7821.cfm,accessed on September13,
2011; Health Care Advisory Board interviewsand analysis.
Baby Boomer Surge Beginning
Medicare Rolls in Line to Increase Dramatically
2011 US Population Distribution By Age
75 M Baby Boomers
~7,000/day
Newly eligible Medicare
beneficiaries
23%
Percentage of
population covered
by Medicare in 2030
20. Medicare Enrollment, 1966-2011
NOTES: Numbers may not sum to total due to rounding. People with disabilities under age 65 were not eligible for Medicare prior to 1972.
SOURCE: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Medicare Enrollment: Hospital Insurance and/or Supplemental Medical Insurance Programs for Total,
Fee-for-Service and Managed Care Enrollees as of July 1, 2008: Selected Calendar Years 1966-2008; 2009-2011, HHS Budget in Brief, FY2011.
Number in millions:
21. Percent Distribution of National Health Expenditures, by Type of
Sponsor, 1987, 2000, 2010
Government Private
1987 (Total = $519.1 billion)
Government Private Government Private
2000 (Total = $1,377.2
billion)
31.8%
68.2%
35.5%
64.5%
44.9%
55.1%
Federal Private Business
State & Local Household
Other Private
Revenues
2010 (Total = $2,593.6
billion)
22. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
49
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
52%
20%
27%
Moving Ever Closer to Single Payer
Medicare to Constitute Majority of Discharges by 2021
Inpatient Volume by Payer Class
Medicaid
Commercial
Medicare37%35%
22%
Medicaid
Commercial Medicare
2011
Self Pay
5%
2021
0.3% Self Pay
23. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
Programs
17
Health Care Likely On the Chopping Block
But Little Agreement on How
Source: New York Times,availableat: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/
2010/02/01/us/budget.html,accessed September17, 2011; Health Care
AdvisoryBoard interviews and analysis.
1) Includes spending for Medicare, Medicaid,CHIP, substance abuse and mental health services,
National Institutes of Health, and Food and Drug Administration.
2) Includes spending for unemploymentinsurance programs, food stamps, militaryand federal civilian
employeeretirementand disability, and TemporaryAssistance for Needy Families(TANF) program.
24%
20%
20%
15%
14% Health Care1
Defense
Social Security
Other
Safety Net
2
Interest
on Debt 7%
Distribution of Spending in
2011 Budget Proposal
Other
Possible Approaches to
Reducing Health Care Spending
Decreased
supplemental payments
Eligibility changes Provider rate cuts
Payment model overhaul
(i.e. voucher system)
Fraud, waste
reduction
Cost shifting to
beneficiaries
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29. âMedicare spent an estimated $4.4 billion in 2009 to
care for patients who had been harmed in the
hospital, and readmissions cost Medicare another $26
billion.â
Room for Improvement
30. Š2012THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANY
4
Our Inability to Execute on the Vision
Faced with an Unsustainable Status Quo
Public Insurance Financing Inadequate
âThe Medicare Hospital Insurance trust fund is now estimated to be exhausted in 2024, 5 yearâs earlier than
was shown in last yearâs report and the fund is not adequately financed over the next 10 years.â
Board of Trustees
Annual Report of Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund
April 2012
Rampant Delivery System Inefficiencies
"Our healthcare system is fragmented, with a
misalignment of incentivesâŚthat spawns inefficient
allocation of resources [and] adversely impacts quality,
cost, and outcomes. Eliminating waste ⌠is crucial. . . .â
Alain C. Enthoven
American Journal of Managed Care
December 2009
A Cottage Industry Lacking Standardization
âOur current health care system is essentially a
cottage industry of non-integrated, dedicated
artisans âŚServices are often highly variable,
performance is largely unmeasuredâŚand
standardized processes are regarded skeptically.
âŚThe gap between established science and
current practice is wide.â . . .
Stephen Swensen, Gregg Meyer et al.
New England Journal of Medicine
January 2010
31.
32. IMAGECREDIT:SHUTTERSTOCK.
Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
An Industry Preparing For Fundamental Change
Coverage Expansion, Payment Reform Reshaping Health Care
Timeline of Health Reform Developments
VAAttorney
General files first
lawsuit against
individual mandate
CMS releases
proposed rule for
Medicare Shared
Savings Program
HHS releases
Meaningful Use
regulations
Patient Protection
and Affordable Care
Act (PPACA) passes
House of
Representatives
President
Obama repeals
1099 reporting
requirement
from PPACA
CMS issues
provisions to Hospital
Readmissions
Reduction Program
HHS releases
Medicare Value-
Based Purchasing
Program final rule
5
34. ď Expand health insurance coverage
ď Improve coverage for those with health
insurance
ď Improve access to and quality of care
ď Control rising health care costs
Goals for Health Reform
35. Promoting Health Coverage
Medicaid
Coverage
(up to 133%
FPL)
Employer-Sponsored
Coverage
Exchanges
(subsidies 133-
400% FPL)
Individual
Mandate
Health
Insurance
Market Reforms
Universal Coverage
36. Health Reform and Delivery System
Changes
ď Promoting primary care and prevention
ď Improving provider supply
ď Developing new models for coordinating
and delivering care
ď Making use of information technology
ď Reforming provider payments to
promote quality
37. Improving Health Care
Quality
⢠Development of a national quality strategy
⢠Coordinated care through medical homes and
other models
⢠Quality-based payments for health care
providers and improved information on provider
quality
⢠Comparative effectiveness research to identify
most effective treatments and interventions
⢠Enhanced data collection to address health care
disparities
38. Health Reform Implementation
Timeline
2010
⢠Some insurance
market changesâno
cost-sharing for
preventive
services, dependent
coverage to age
26, no lifetime caps
⢠Pre-existing condition
insurance plan
⢠Small business tax
credits
⢠Premium review
2011-2013
⢠No cost-sharing for
preventive services in
Medicare and
Medicaid
⢠Increased payments
for primary care
⢠Reduced payments
for Medicare
providers and health
plans
⢠New delivery system
models in Medicare
and Medicaid
⢠Tax changes and new
health industry fees
2014
⢠Medicaid expansion
⢠Health Insurance
Exchanges
⢠Premium subsidies
⢠Insurance market
rulesâprohibition on
denying coverage or
charging more to
those who are
sick, standardized
benefits
⢠Individual mandate
⢠Employer
requirements
39. Health Insurance Coverage Among Young Adults, Ages 19â25 And 26â34, By Quarter, 2005â
11.
Sommers B D et al. Health Aff 2013;32:165-174
Š2013 by Project HOPE - The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.
40. Medicare Part A Trust Fund
Pre-health reform:
2017 projected insolvency date
Assets as a share of annual spending:
Post-health reform:
2029 projected insolvency date
Projection: Health reform legislation will extend the life of the Medicare Part A Trust
Fund from 2017 to 2029
41. Rate of Medicare Spending Projected to Slow
NOTE: Estimates do not take into account future changes to the Sustainable Growth Rate formula to prevent reduction in fees.
SOURCE: Medicare Baseline Spending before reform from CBO, March 2009 Baseline: MEDICARE; after reform from Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of CBO cost
estimates of health reform legislation, March 20, 2010.
Medicare Baseline Spending
(in $ billions)
Baseline Medicare
Spending
Medicare Spending AFTER
Health Reform
Congressional Budget Office Projections
Projected Savings
43. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
Decelerating
Price Growth
⢠Federal, state budget pressures
constraining public payer price growth
⢠Payments subject to quality,
cost-based risks
⢠Commercial cost shifting
stretched to the limit
Shifting
Payer Mix
⢠Baby Boomers entering Medicare rolls
⢠Coverage expansion boosting
Medicaid eligibility
⢠Most demand growth over the next
decade comes from publicly
insured patients
15
Four Forces Shaping Future Margins
Financial, Clinical Profiles Shifting Dramatically
Continuing Cost
Pressure
⢠No sign of slower cost growth ahead
⢠Drivers of new cost growth largely
non-accretive
Deteriorating
Case Mix
⢠Medical demand from aging
population threatens to crowd out
profitable procedures
⢠Incidence of chronic disease,
multiple comorbidities rising
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
45. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
10
Getting Paid Less to Do Less
New Payment Models Calling Old Imperatives Into Question
Accountable Payment Models
Performance Risk
Cost of Care
Bundled Pricing
⢠Bundled Payments for Care
Improvement program
⢠Commercial bundled
contracts
Utilization Risk
Volume of Care
Shared Savings
⢠Medicare Shared
Savings Program
⢠Pioneer ACO Program
⢠Commercial ACO
contracts
Quality of Care
Pay-for-Performance
⢠Value-Based Purchasing
⢠Readmissions penalties
⢠Quality-based
commercial contracts
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
46. Š2012THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANY
8
Increased Provider Accountability Has Arrived
Value-Based Purchasing Represents First (of Newest) Pushes
Initiative
Value-Based
Purchasing
Description
⢠Mandatory pay-for-performance program
⢠Percentage of hospital inpatient payments
withheld, earned back based on quality
performance
Payment Timeline
⢠Withholds begin at 1% in 2013, grow to 2%
by 2017
⢠Hospitals with greater than expected
readmission rate subject to financial penalty
⢠Penalties capped at 1% of total DRG
paymentsin 2013,2% in 2014, and not to
Readmissions
Bundled
Payment
⢠Performance based on 30-day readmission
metrics for three conditions in 2013,
expanding in 2015 to include four others
⢠Payer disburses single payment to cover
hospital, physician, or other services
performed during an inpatient stay or
episode of care
â˘
â˘
â˘
â˘
exceed 3% in 2015 and beyond
Nov 4th: Letter of intent due for Models 2 to 4
Q1 2012: Model 1 begins
H2 2012: Model 2-4 begins
2013: National pilot on episodic bundling starts
Shared Savings
Medical Home
Reimbursement
1) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation.
⢠ACOs receive shared savingspayments if
spending per attributed beneficiary grows
slower than national per beneficiary spending
⢠Two CMS pilots currently operational
⢠First ACO contracts to begin April 2012;
contracts to last minimum of three years
⢠CMMI primary care pilot expected to launch in
mid-20121
⢠CMS multi-payer advanced primary care
demonstration started in mid-2011
Source: Clinical Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
Mandatory
Voluntary
For Now
47. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
22
Source: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, âCMS Issues Final Rule for First Year of Hospital
Value-Based Purchasing Program,âApril 29, 2011; Health Care Advisory Board interviewsand analysis.
1) In FY 2013, clinical care measures are weighted at 70 percent
and patient experiencemeasures are weighted at 30 percent.
Picking Winners, Losers Based on Performance
Performance Scores Drive Payment Redistribution
Final Rule: Value-Based Purchasing Program Structure
Measure Performance
⢠CMS evaluates hospitals based
on achievement and
improvement on selected
clinical care, patient
experience measures
⢠Based on weighted average of
achievement and improvement
scores, CMS calculates Total
Performance Scores (TPS) for
each hospital1
Compare Hospitals
⢠Medicare ranks all hospitals
based on TPS
⢠For achievement score,
hospitals ranked below the 50th
percentile do not receive points
towards TPS
⢠For improvement score,
hospitals whose performance
has not improved relative to a
baseline score do not receive
points toward TPS
Adjust Payments
⢠Medicare converts TPS into
incentive payments
⢠Calculation will use linear
exchange function
⢠Hospitals that receive higher
TPS will receive higher
incentive payments
⢠CMS to notify hospitals of
incentive payment for FY 2013
on November 1, 2012
48. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
35
Case in Brief: BCBS Hospital Choice Product
⢠Product spurred by Massachusetts regulation, which mandated that insurers in
the Connector network offer at least one tiered or limited network plan
⢠Product incents patients to choose low-cost, in-network providers by imposing
fees for seeking care at 15 higher cost hospitals
⢠BCBS reports that the plan saves employers 5.5 percent; product the most
successful in planâs history
Source: Blue Cross Blue Shield, âHospital Choice Cost Sharing,â availableat:
http://www.bluecrossma.com/plan-education/pdf/hospital-list.pdf,accessed April 15,
2011; Health Care Advisory Board interviewsand analysis.
Employers Increasingly Willing to Restrict Choice
Limiting Choice No Longer the Third Rail
Narrow Networks Making a Resurgence
Employer
Visits to higher-cost hospitals require
higher out-of-pocket payment
Access to lower-cost hospitals
available at standard co-payment rates
49. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
36
Case in Brief: WellPoint
⢠Insurer replacing traditional eight
percent annual rate increases with
new mandatory program that pays
increases only to hospitals with
sufficient scores on 51 quality of
care indicators
⢠WellPoint estimates that program will
reduce annual inpatient cost growth by
three to five percentage points
55%35%
Satisfaction
10%
Health
Outcomes
Patient
Safety
Quality Performance Risk Increasingly Prevalent
Private Insurers Raising the Stakes
WellPoint Tying Pay Increases to Quality Metrics
Quality Metric Weights
Patient
3-5%
Estimated percentage
reduction in annual
inpatient cost growth
Source: Adamy J., âWellPointShakes Up Hospital Payments,â The Wall Street
Journal,May 16, 2011; Health Care AdvisoryBoard interviewsand analysis.
55. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
23
Redefining the Acute Care Episode: BUNDLED PAYMENTS
Driving Delivery System Integration
Bundled Payment Framework
Lump Sum Payments Drive Integration
Through Shared Accountability
Payer
Physician
Services
Hospital
Services
Post-Acute
Services
Program in Brief: Medicareâs Bundled
Payments for Care Improvement
⢠Program seeking voluntary participation in
four bundled payment models
⢠Models 1-3 provide retrospective
reimbursement; Models 2 and 3 include
post-episode reconciliation; Model 4 offers
single prospective payment
⢠Acute care hospitals, physician groups,
health systems eligible for all models;
post-acute facilities may participate without
hospitals in Model 3
⢠Physicians eligible for gainsharing bonuses
up to 50 percent of traditional fee schedule
⢠For all models, applicants must propose
quality measures, which CMS will use to
develop set of standardized metrics
Source: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Health Care
AdvisoryBoard interviews and analysis.
56. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
27
Program in Brief: Medicare Shared
Savings Program
⢠Program begins April 1 or July 1, 2012;
contracts to last minimum of three years
⢠Physician groups and hospitals eligible to
participate, but primary care physicians must
be included in any ACO group
⢠Participating ACOs must serve at least 5,000
Medicare beneficiaries
⢠Bonus potential to depend on Medicare cost
savings, quality metrics
⢠Two payment models available: one with no
downside risk, the second with downside risk
in all three years
ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATIONS
Applying Total Cost Accountability to Fee-for-Service Payments
Shared Savings Payment Cycle
Assignment
Patients assigned to ACO
Target Actual
based on terms of contract
Billing
Providers bill normally, receive
standard fee-for-service
payments
Comparison
Total cost of care for assigned
population compared to risk-
adjusted target expenditures
Bonus
Bonuses or penalties levied
based on variance of
1
2
3
4
5
expenditures from target
Distribution
ACO responsible for dividing
bonus payments among
stakeholders
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
57. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
(40%)
(14%)
(15%)
(24%)
90
PATIENT CENTERED MEDICAL HOME
PreventableAdmissions Drop Upon Improved Management
Central Aims of Medical Home Model
Comprehensive
Care
Enhanced
Access
Patient
Engagement
Coordinated
Care
Community Care of
North Carolina
Source: Patient Centered PrimaryCare Collaborative,availableat:
http://www.pcpcc.net/files/pcmh_evidence_outcomes_2009.pdf,accessed
May 3, 2011; Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
Percent Change in Hospitalizations
Resulting from Medical Home Models
Geisinger Health
System (ProvenHealth
Navigator)
Genesee Health
Plan (HealthWorks)
HealthPartners Medical
Group (BestCare)
59. Š2012THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANY
5
Source: Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the
21st Century, Institute of Medicine,2001
REDESIGNED CARE SYSTEM
Organizations
that facilitate
work of
patient-
centered
teams
High-
performing
patient-
centered
teams
â˘
â˘
â˘
â˘
â˘
REDESIGN IMPERATIVES
Reengineered care processes
Effective use of information technologies
Knowledge and skills management
Development of effective care teams
Coordination of care across patient conditions, services, sites
of care over time
An Inarguable Right Answer
A Redesigned Care System Centered on Value, Safety, and Outcomes
Recommendations from Institute of Medicine
Rules for Redesigning the Care System
1.
2.
Care is based on continuous healing
relationships
Care is customized to patient needs
3.
4.
5.
6.
and values
Patient is the source of control
Knowledge is shared and information
flows freely
Decision making is evidence-based
Safety is a system priority
7.
8.
9.
10.
Transparency is necessary
Needs are anticipated
Waste is continuously decreased
Cooperation among clinicians is a
priority
67. Š2011THEADVISORYBOARDCOMPANYâ˘24740A
Productivity
79
Source: Health Care Advisory Board interviews and analysis.
Imperative #5: Redesign Inpatient Care Models
Migrating Toward Top-of-License Inpatient Care
Progress Must Continue Even in the Face of Practical Pressures
Single RN responsible
during shift, but can
delegate tasks to
ancillary staff
Yesterday
Time
Primary
Single RN responsible
for patientâs care
across entire stay
Today
Hybrid
Tomorrow
Team-Based
Total
Patient Care
Single RN responsible
for patientâs care
across nurseâs shift
Progress
RN leads team of
ancillary staff jointly
responsible for all
assigned patients
Practical Pressures
Impeding Productivity
⢠Union pressure
⢠Workforce
stability/training
requirements
⢠Inadequate
delegation skills
Practical Pressure
69. ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
ď TRUE COST OF IMPLEMENTING ACA
ď HEALTH EXCHANGE IMPLEMENTATION
ď INDEPENDENT PAYMENT ADVISORY BOARD
ď IS RATE SETTING THE ANSWER?
70. What sets our really expensive health-care system
apart from most others isnât necessarily the fact itâs
not single-payer or universal. Itâs that the federal
government does not regulate the prices that health-
care providers can charge.
An Emerging Conversation
71. âIT IS NOT THE STRONGEST OF THE
SPECIES THAT SURVIVES,NOR THE MOST
INTELLIGENT,BUT THE ONE MOST
RESPONSIVE TO CHANGEâ
Charles Darwin
Before we get into specific provisions of the law, it is helpful to understand what the law sought to achieve. Most people can agree on the underlying problems with our system. Many people (50 million in 2009) lack health insurance and even those with coverage face increasing premiums and plans that may not cover the services they need. Fragmentation in the health care system leads to duplication and inefficient care and means that people do not always receive the best care. Health care costs continue to skyrocket, outpacing increases in inflation as well as workers wages. And, while we donât all agree on the solutions, the overarching goals for health reform were to address these fundamental problems. The goals spanned four key areas: expanding coverage to the millions of Americans who lack it today; improving the affordability and quality of the coverage for those who are currently insured; improving access to and the overall quality of care that individuals receive; and constraining the growth in health care costs. The law includes numerous provisions designed to address each of these goals. This tutorial will focus on some of the more significant provisions in each area.
The health reform law seeks to expand health coverage by building on the existing public-private system for providing health insurance and filling in the gaps in the current system. It expands eligibility for the Medicaid program, the current safety net health insurance program for the poor. It creates new exchanges, or marketplaces, where people can purchase coverage and, depending on their income, receive premium subsidies to help them afford the coverage. It includes new penalties for employers that donât offer coverage to their employees and provides tax credits to small employers that do to bolster the availability of employer-sponsored coverage. Supporting these enhanced coverage mechanisms are a new requirement that individuals, with some exceptions, have health insurance (referred to as the individual mandate) and new rules for insurers requiring them to provide coverage to everyone regardless of health status and limiting the variations in premiums they charge people.Together, these strategies are designed to increase significantly the number of people with health insurance.
In addition to the provisions focusing on health coverage, the law makes important changes to the health care delivery system. These delivery system changes are aimed at improving access to care and overall quality and to reign in rising health care costs. They cover a number of areas including promoting primary care and prevention, improving the supply of providers, particularly primary care providers, creating new models for delivering health care that promote quality and efficiency, using health information technology to streamline the delivery of care, and creating incentives for quality care through provider payments.
As one of the overarching goals for health reform, the law contains numerous provisions to improve health care quality. While itâs not possible to describe all of the quality improvement provisions, here are a few of the more significant ones. First, the law requires the development of a national quality strategy to coordinate federal activities to improve the nationâs health. It promotes more coordinated health care through the creation of medical homes and other arrangements that hold providers accountable for the care they provide. Paying providers based on the quality of care they provide and making information on provider quality available to consumers is a central tenet of the law. The law also invests in research to identify and disseminate findings on the most effective treatments. Finally, enhanced data collection will enable a renewed focus on reducing health care disparities.
As difficult as the debate over the health reform legislation was, many people agree that passing a bill was easy compared to the very challenging task of implementing the law.Health reform will be implemented over the next several years. A number of health insurance improvements, including allowing young adults to remain on their parentsâ health insurance policies, eliminating lifetime limits and restricting annual limits on coverage, and prohibiting denials of coverage to children with pre-existing medical conditions go into effect this year. Still, the major coverage expansions and significant reforms to the health insurance markets that will guaranteed access to coverage for everyone wonât be implemented until 2014. The many delivery system changes will occur between now and 2014.
With ongoing concern about the growth in Medicare spending, this exhibit confirms that the health reform law is projected to significantly reduce the growth in Medicare spending over the next decade. By 2015, Medicare spending is expected to be $50 billion less than it would have been in the absence of the health reform law. By 2019, Medicare spending is projected to be $100 billion less than it would have been without health reform.Or, on a per capita basis, the annual growth in Medicare spending over a ten year period is projected to decline from 6.8 percent pre health reform to 5.5 percent after health reform.