Drew E. Altman, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of the Kaiser Family Foundation, presented at AcademyHealth’s 25th Annual Research Meeting (ARM) on Monday, June 10 on the nexus between health care costs, the politics of health care, and the economy. The video, transcript, and slides can be found online.
Dr. Altman made the case that the next few months will be critical for health policymakers. Will health care be a top issue in the 2008 election? Though the issue had been rising in saliency over the last year, its relevance for voters fell with the latest negative news about the economy. Will the politicians and voters see the relationship between the economy, health coverage, and rising health costs? If health reform can be a high priority in the political debates between now and November and, if real connections can be drawn between the voters’ pocket books and the need for expanded health coverage, then national health care reform in 2009 might be possible.
To view hundreds of other informative presentations and Web casts from the ARM, please visit the ARM Web site.
