U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) on March 15 presented a newly formed bipartisan caucus that will work on inventive health care policy solutions focused on lowering patient costs and enhancing quality of care.
Reps. Kelly and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) joined U.S. Reps. Ron Kind (D-WI) and Ami Bera (D-CA) as the founding co-chairs of the Health Care Innovation Caucus, which will “explore and advance successful, innovative payment models” and the technologies needed to support them, the lawmakers explained last week in a joint statement.
“With the health care industry rapidly transforming from a volume-driven system to one that rewards value and outcomes, it is vital that we maintain this acceleration by encouraging a marketplace of multiple payment models and using lessons learned to improve care for consumers,” the lawmakers said.
Rep. Kelly said lawmakers must think critically about how to control Americans’ health care costs, which are the highest per person in the world. “The Health Care Innovation Caucus is a great opportunity for Members of Congress from both parties to come together and advance new ways of paying for and coordinating health care,” said Kelly. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to encourage new ideas and spur new technology throughout this entire field.”
Innovations such as electronic health care records and federally approved medicines and treatments are driving the health care industry’s growth, said Rep. Mullin, yet obsolete payment models hinder further progress. “We need to make sure that the federal government doesn’t stand in the way as medical innovation brings health care into the 21st century,” Mullin said. “I’m proud to be a part of the Innovation Caucus, which will serve as a bridge for the novel developments of the medical field as they navigate the pre-digital age laws of Congress.”
Formation of the caucus has drawn praise from an array of health care organizations and stakeholders across the country, including the Health Care Transformation Task Force (HCTTF), the National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC), and Premier Inc.
“As the industry continues to transition to value-based care models, the caucus’s leadership will be paramount in exploring and advancing federal policies promoting successful patient-centered innovative payment models and technologies and outcome measures that support these models,” said Jeff Micklos, executive director of HCTTF. The organization’s members “recognize all too well the need for a sweeping revolution of the health care system,” he added. “It’s our hope that the Caucus will be a guiding force in leading that revolution.”
In fact, few things are more important to making long-term health care affordable than “moving beyond today’s costly, volume-centered paradigm,” said John Rother, president and chief executive officer of NCHC. “The leadership we expect from the new Health Care Innovation Caucus could be key to achieving that.”
Blair Childs, senior vice president of public affairs at health care improvement company Premier, thanked the lawmakers for taking the lead on creating the caucus to take on much-needed reforms. “Policy changes and payment model improvements are critical to strengthen and expand this movement, which is already generating significant returns in cost and quality,” Childs said.