The 2013
State Health Research and Policy Interest Group Annual Meeting was held on Saturday, June 22 in conjunction with AcademyHealth’s
Annual Research Meeting. This one-day meeting provides a forum for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to share state-level research that emphasizes the unique challenges of working within a state policy and political environment. This year’s speakers presented on the findings and policy implications of their research related to the role of university-state partnerships, innovative approaches to delivery and payment system reform, outreach and enrollment efforts under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the impact of the ACA on Medicaid and CHIP populations, and the use of state population health survey data to inform care coverage policy.
The meeting materials, including agenda, presentations, and meeting summary, are available on the State Interest Group’s
website. Here are some highlights from the presentations:
- Judith Steinberg, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, and Senior Director, Office of Healthcare Innovation & Quality, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Commonwealth Medicine, presented her findings on the impact of the Massachusetts Patient-Centered Medical Initiative on clinical quality of care to date.
- Elizabeth Lukanen, Senior Research Fellow, State Health Assistance Data Access Center, focused on the research she conducted for the Minnesota Comprehensive Health Association (MCHA), the high-risk pool in Minnesota, to help it transition its enrollees to alternative coverage options by assessing for Medicaid and exchange eligibility, assessing its enrollees’ familiarity with ACA changes, and collecting information to inform outreach and communication strategies.
- Pamela Riley, The Commonwealth Fund, gave a presentation featuring The Commonwealth Fund State Scorecard on Health System Performance for Vulnerable Populations, which offers an assessment of how low-income populations fare in each state in order to identify areas for improvement.
- Peter Graven, Health Economist, Center for Health Systems Effectiveness at Oregon Health and Science University, detailed the research he conducted on the financial impact of the state's Medicaid expansion on Oregon’s budget in order to help inform the debate within the state legislature.
- Gerald F. Kominski, Professor, Health Policy and Management, and Director, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, summarized his research on the projected newly eligible, newly insured, and remaining uninsured in California under the ACA.
