State Policymakers’ Priorities for Improving the Health System

This State Health Policy Briefing presents the issues identified by NASHP’s state leadership as their most significant priorities for improving their health systems. As Academy members discussed their priorities, a set of broader themes emerged. These larger policy goals are: Connect People to Needed Services; Promote Coordination and Integration in the Health System; Improve Care for Populations with Complex Needs; Orient the Health System toward Results; Increase Health System Efficiencies. This briefing also provides a more detailed list of states’ priorities presented in four major categories of state health policy: Coverage and Access; Health Systems Improvement; Special Services and Populations; and Long Term and Chronic Care.

Diane Justice, Senior Program Director

Catherine Hess, Managing Director for Coverage and Access

Alan Weil, Executive Director

November 2009

Role of States in National Health Care Reform