One of the most important needs facing all Floridians is how to obtain access to high-quality health care in a cost-effective manner, which produces the best health outcomes for individual patients and their families.This is especially true with long-term care and end-of-life care.
Diversity is one of Floridas most valued characteristics, and one of its greatest opportunities for exploring different solutions to ensure access to quality health care. There is no single "silver bullet" which will serve all Floridians, because health care needs vary by patient.
So, how do we best ensure access to high-quality health care in the state?Any market or policy response to this question must be based on three pillars of health care policy: affordability (cost), quality and access (both to health coverage and to appropriate health care providers).
Greater affordability can be accomplished in many ways. One important tool is providing consumers of health care with better information about the true cost of health services. Also called transparency, many believe it is critical that all payers and consumers of health care have this information in a clear and accessible manner in order to allow the market to work more efficiently, which will reduce costs.
Floridians should also require from the system higher quality, which allows patients to achieve better health outcomes and a higher quality of life. Many health economists argue that our health care system spends considerably more than other countries, yet fails to accomplish comparable quality outcomes. But, this does not have to be the case.
Health plans and providers are working together to recognize where we can improve patient outcomes through tools like reducing avoidable hospital re-admissions, providing better health information so patients can make more informed health choices, and using new technologies in a way that identifies and treats disease earlier.
The states demographics and geography also create challenges and opportunities in terms of access to health coverage and services. One of the ways this can be accomplished is ensuring that all Floridians have access to a medical home, a point of access to primary care which emphasizes prevention and disease management in order to avoid the development or worsening of a health condition.
Health plans and providers are looking for opportunities to create medical homes, especially in rural areas, and are developing incentives for patients to take more control of their health care.
There are still many unanswered questions and issues that must be addressed now that we know the U.S. Supreme Courts decision. Like many others, the health plan industry is working to ascertain its full impact on health care in Florida. In the coming months, we hope that any policy decisions relating to improving Floridas health care system are centered on patients, individuals and employers the purchasers of health care and address the underlying factors that drive up cost and, ultimately, impact quality and access to care.
Michael Garner serves as president and CEO of the Florida Association of Health Plans.
