Day 1: Thursday, February 1

7:30 - 8:30 a.m.
Registration & Continental Breakfast

8:30 - 8:35 a.m.
Welcome & Introductions
David Helms, John Iglehart

8:35 - 10:30 a.m.
Health Policy Agenda for 2001
The morning will focus on the health policy agendas of key policymakers.

Overview
Robert Reischauer
The Urban Institute

The Administration's Agenda
During his campaign, president George W. Bush identified a number of health policy issues that would be on his Administration's agenda including Medicare reform, prescription drug benefits for seniors, health insurance tax credits, and a patient's bill of rights. As the Bush administration develops its policy priorities for 2001, which health care issues will be at the forefront and what positions will the administration advocate?

The Congressional Agenda
An evenly divided Senate and a Republican controlled House with a slim majority represents a challenge in creating a consensus on health care legislation. This Congress will be required to tackle such controversial issues as providing a pharmaceutical benefit under Medicare, a Patients' Bill of Rights, SCHIP growth, Medicaid reform, and Medicare "give backs". How will Congressional leaders in health policy approach this challenge in the coming year?

10:30 - 11:00 a.m.
Break

11:00 - 12:30 p.m.
The States' Agenda
As the "laboratories of health policy," state governments will address a wide range of policy issues in 2001 including access to health insurance, expansion of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), caring for a growing elderly population, prescription drug costs, Medicaid costs, and managed care regulation. What factors will determine state health policy priorities for the upcoming year and what support will states expect from the new administration?

The Private Sector Perspective
With rising costs and competitive pressures in the private health care market, health plans, providers, and Fortune 500 companies are exercising their authority to set policies that influence the cost and quality of health care for millions of Americans. What are the major pressures on health care's private sector and how will these pressures influence the health care marketplace in 2001?

12:30 - 2:00 p.m.
Lunch & Speaker
A Healthcare Revolution: How Advances in Genomics and Technology Will Change Health Care in the New Century
Speaker: Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D.
National Human Genome Research Institute
National Institutes of Health

2:00 - 3:30 p.m.

Breakouts
Four breakout sessions will offer greater opportunities for interaction among those most interested in specific topics.

Medicare Reform
Policymakers agree that Medicare reform is needed, but there is little consensus regarding its direction and design. This session will outline options for restructuring Medicare, highlight the role that managed care has played in Medicare to date, and discuss how Congress might move to add a prescription drug benefit to Medicare and to pass broad Medicare reforms.

The Uninsured
Even with the recent good news about a decrease in the number of Americans without health insurance, 44 million still have no coverage. Many of the uninsured are members of low-income working families, and disproportionate numbers are ethnic or racial minorities. This session will explore the implications of the uninsured problem and discuss strategies for expanding insurance coverage.

The New Health Care Market
Like other sectors of the economy, health care is adapting to a new marketplace increasingly focused on controlling costs, improving quality, and finding ways to communicate a wealth of new electronic information to consumers, purchasers, and providers. In this session, participants will learn about the latest trends shaping the health care market in 2001 and beyond.

A Public-Private Partnership on Quality
The environment of public and private health care policy is shifting to a focus on improving the quality of health care. Given this new direction, what are the most promising policy levers to ensure better understanding of the nature of quality problems in the U.S. and to promote progress toward quality improvement?

3:30 - 4:00 p.m.
Break

4:00 - 5:30 p.m.
Plenary Session (Panel)
The Public View
Pollster(s) will explore the public's views of critical health issues in the year ahead.
Speakers:
Bob Blendon, M.B.A., Sc.D.
Harvard School of Public Health and the John F. Kennedy School of Government
Bill McInturff
Public Opinion Strategies
Celinda Lake
Lake, Snell, Perry & Associates, Inc.

5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Reception

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Day 2: Friday, February 2

8:00 - 8:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast

8:30 - 10:00 a.m.
Pharmaceuticals and Emerging Technologies
With an innovation pipeline full of promising but expensive new products, how will society strike a balance between the insatiable patient demand for breakthrough drugs and the limited resources available to cover their costs?
Moderator: John Iglehart, Health Affairs
Speakers:
Jane Henney, M.D., Food and Drug Administration
Ray Gilmartin, Merck & Co., Inc.

10:00 - 10:30 a.m.
Break

10:30 - 12:00 noon
The Changing Role of Health Care Consumers
Health care consumers are becoming increasingly savvy at navigating a complex health care system and making their voices heard by public and private policymakers. With notable changes already occurring in the areas of the Internet and patient protections against health plan decisions, how will the demands of health care consumers shape health policy in coming years?

12:00 noon - 1:30 p.m.
Lunch & Speaker
Speaker: Uwe Reinhardt
Princeton University
Health Care's Permanent Auditors: Health Services Research as a Compensation Market Failure
"Sponsored by HSR"

1:30 - 3:00 p.m.
The Pundit's Perspective
This panel will offer an insider's view of the 2001 health policy agenda.

3:00 p.m.
Adjourn