Health Care Opinion Leaders' Views on Congressional Priorities

More than nine of 10 leaders in health care and health care policy believe the general direction set by the Affordable Care Act is appropriate, with nearly seven of 10 favoring implementing the law with little or no change, according to a Commonwealth Fund/Modern Healthcare Health Care Opinion Leaders Survey. A large majority of leaders support moving forward with each of the major elements of reform, including the individual mandate, state-based health insurance exchanges, and Medicaid expansion. Survey respondents believe payment approaches that encourage care coordination for patients with chronic diseases, establish greater alignment across public and private purchasers, and incentivize the use of evidence-based medicine will be effective in achieving a high performance health system. Eighty-one percent of leaders support expanding successful cost-containment pilots contained in the Affordable Care Act as part of a federal budget deficit reduction strategy.