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Major Stakeholders in Health Reform Debate Call for Improvements in Scoring of Congressional Health Care Proposals

Posted on: Wednesday, 22 April 2009, 08:51 CDT

Benefits of Promoting Health and Wellness and Reducing Common and Costly Chronic Disease Not Fully Captured in Current CBO Estimates, Group Says to Senate and House Leadership

WASHINGTON, April 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More than 100 members of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) - an organization representing some of the nation's biggest voices in health care - today called on leaders in Congress to encourage updates in the manner in which the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) produces estimates for the cost of legislative proposals in health care. Specifically, they called out limitations in the current methods that, once corrected, would more accurately recognize the value of health care efforts aimed at attacking a significant driver of health care costs: the unchecked growth in common and costly chronic diseases, and related problems such as obesity.

In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the 150 partners and affiliated organizations that signed the letter ask that, "As our nation considers comprehensive health reform proposals, we hope that you will encourage the Congressional Budget Office to address barriers to recognizing the economic value of prevention and chronic disease management."

The group outlined several recommendations for updating the manner in which CBO scores health care proposals including:

• A revision of "baseline" cost estimates to take in to account the deteriorating health status of the population and the estimated impact of this trend on spending in the years ahead
• The ability to score savings beyond the commonly-accepted 10-year scoring window in order to sufficiently capture the long-term value of population health improvement programs
• An estimate of the broader economic impact a policy change to promote population health will have on productivity, and ultimately, the economy

In particular, the group said that it wants to encourage the CBO to find ways to incorporate the benefits of targeted interventions with proven success, as identified in the growing body of research on this issue, and estimate what the impact of these changes could be over the short and long-term.

Chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, are responsible for seven out of 10 deaths and affect more than 130 million Americans. The annual economic impact on the U.S. of the seven most common chronic diseases is estimated to be $1.3 trillion, which could balloon to nearly $6 trillion by 2050.

Full text of the letter to Speaker Pelosi and Senator Reid follows.

About the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease:

The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is a national and state-based coalition of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs in the U.S.: chronic disease. For more information about the PFCD and its partner organizations, please visit: www.fightchronicdisease.org.

April 21, 2009

Dear Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid:

As members of the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD), we thank you for your leadership in Congress and support of President Obama in making health care reform a priority in 2009.

When it comes to the health of the American people, our nation currently faces a crisis. Despite all the resources being spent on health care in the United States, many Americans struggle with their health. Millions suffer from common and costly chronic health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. The rapid growth in these problems has caused individual health costs to soar, undercut U.S. competitiveness and burdened the public health insurance infrastructure.

Spending on patients with one or more chronic diseases now represents more than 75 percent of total spending on health care in the U.S., and even more in public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Until we address the true causes of this crisis, we will never be able to slow spending or make health care more affordable. Nor we will have a workforce - or an economy - that can perform to its fullest potential.

The PFCD, a national and state-based coalition of hundreds of patient, provider, community, business and labor groups, is committed to raising awareness about this issue, while also providing commonsense, bipartisan solutions to help solve the problem. We believe that investing in prevention and disease management will save lives and money now and well into the future. Recognition of the opportunity to achieve the long-term benefits of investment in these areas would provide a positive framework for health policy decisions.

As our nation considers comprehensive health reform proposals, we hope that you will encourage the Congressional Budget Office to address barriers to recognizing the economic value of prevention and chronic disease management. There are three key points that lead to insufficient recognition of the opportunities offered by investments in prevention and disease management:

• The current government scoring windows cannot sufficiently capture the long-term value of population health improvement programs aimed at wellness and prevention.
• Health care expenditure estimates depend critically on the assumptions made in the baseline, including projected changes in the current health status of the population and the estimated impact of health status trends. Currently, these assumptions are not transparent.
• CBO scoring does not currently include analysis of the broader economic impact a policy change will have through changes in population health and productivity. Estimates of this societal cost impact would be of great value to legislators.

Such a holistic and comprehensive approach to reform is the only way that we will truly help improve Americans' health, spend our limited health resources more wisely, and boost our economy.

Thank you, in advance, for your support.

Sincerely,

The undersigned Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease national and state partners and other concerned organizations (see full list below)

National partners and other concerned organizations: AdvaMed (Advanced Medical Technology Association) Alliance for Aging Research Alzheimer's Foundation American Academy of Nurse Practitioners American Academy of Nursing American College of Physicians American College of Preventive Medicine American Dietetic Association American Osteopathic Association American Pharmacists Association American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Arthritis Foundation Cleveland Clinic Community Health Charities of America The COSHAR Foundation DMAA: the Care Continuum Alliance Easter Seals Healthcare Leadership Council Health Dialog Healthways Intercultural Cancer Caucus IHRSA: International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association Marshfield Clinic Medical Fitness Association Men's Health Network Milken Institute National Alliance for Caregiving National Alliance on Mental Illness National Association of Chronic Disease Directors National Business Coalition on Health National Changing Diabetes(R) Program National Family Caregivers Association National Health Foundation National Latina Health Network National Multiple Sclerosis Society National Patient Advocate Foundation Novo Nordisk Park Nicollet Health Services Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America Pharos Innovations Prevent Blindness America SEIU Self chec, Inc. XLHealth YMCA of the USA State partners: Arkansas Arkansas Respiratory Health Association Lupus Foundation of America, Arkansas Chapter Colorado Alliance of Health Disparities Colorado Cross Disability Coalition Colorado Gerontological Society LiveWell Lupus Foundation Mission Medical Clinic National Association of Hispanic Nurses National Alliance on Mental Illness Rocky Mountain Stroke Association SEIU Illinois AFSCME Council 31 Arthritis Foundation of Greater Chicago Community Health Charities Illinois Mental Health Summit Midwest Business Group on Health Mount Prospect Chamber of Commerce NAACP Lake County Springfield YMCA United Way of Lake County Iowa Arthritis Foundation Community Health Charities of Iowa Iowa Biotechnology Association Maryland Maryland Academy of Family Physicians Minnesota American Cancer Society of Minnesota Arthritis Foundation, North Central Chapter Minneapolis Urban League Sabathani Community Center United Cerebral Palsy of Minnesota New Hampshire Advanced Laser Therapy AIDS Services for the Monadnock Region Council for Children and Adolescents with Chronic Health Conditions New Hampshire Association for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine New Jersey Action Cystic Fibrosis Carpenters Fund of New Jersey HealthCare Institute of New Jersey Juvenile Diabetes Awareness Council of New Jersey Lung Cancer Circle of Hope Mental Health Association in New Jersey New Jersey Association of Mental Health Agencies New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons New Jersey Hospital Association Partners in Care Steamfitters Local 475 North Carolina Alliance of Disability Advocates Arc of North Carolina Autism Society of North Carolina Children and Family Services Association of North Carolina Easter Seals UCP North Carolina National Alliance on Mental Illness-NC National Association of Social Workers-NC National Multiple Sclerosis Society, NC Chapters North Carolina Mental Health Association North Carolina Psychological Association Ohio The Academy of Medicine of Cleveland & Northeastern Ohio Area Health Education Centers - Ohio Statewide Program Arthritis Foundation of Central Ohio Chris Holland, Oregon City Schools, Ohio CIGNA Cleveland Clinic Columbus Public Health County Commissioners Association of Ohio David C. Epstein M.D. MBA Fairhill Partners The Free Medical Clinic of Greater Cleveland National Alliance on Mental Illness Ohio Ohio Alliance of YMCAs Ohio Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance Ohio Association of Free Clinics Ohio Association of School Nurses Ohio Asthma Coalition Ohio Dietetic Association Ohio Nurses Association Ohio Osteopathic Association Ohio Public Health Association Stark Prescription Assistance Network Ohio State University Medical Center Prevent Blindness Ohio United Cerebral Palsy of Central Ohio University of Toledo South Carolina Black Nurses Association of South Carolina Chi Eta Phi, Delta Eta Chapter South Carolina Diabetes Today Advisory Council South Carolina Public Health Institute United Way Association of South Carolina YMCA of Greenville Wisconsin AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce Wisconsin Association of Health Underwriters Wisconsin Dietetic Association Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce

cc: Douglas Elmendorf, Director, Congressional Budget Office; Keith Fontenot, Associate Director for Health Programs, Office of Management and Budget; Bob Kocher, Special Assistant to the President for Health Care, National Economic Council; Nancy-Ann DeParle, Director, White House Office of Health Reform; Senate Health, Education, Labor, Pensions Committee; Senate Finance Committee; House Ways & Means Committee; House Energy & Commerce Committee; Kate Leone, Senior Health Counsel, Senator Reid's Office; Wendall Primus, Policy Advisor, Speaker Pelosi's Office

SOURCE Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease

Source: PR Newswire

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