Healthcare Reform - Next Steps

Here are some ways we can continue to build on the historic changes that came with the law:

• Eliminate the five-year ban for documented immigrants to be eligible for government healthcare benefits (Medicaid, federal subsidies, etc.)

• Allow undocumented immigrants to buy healthcare coverage on the exchange with their own money. It is not good policy to bar some people in our country from obtaining coverage.

• Provide adequate subsidies for low-wage workers and their dependents who will still not be able to afford health insurance

• Ensure adequate competition to bring down costs. The law does not allow for a federal public option to do this, but does give states the option to create public pilot programs.

• Encourage performance-based medicine—i.e., tests that are necessary and treatments that are effective. This may require a big cultural shift for some.

• Encourage a shift from “fee for service” to alternative forms of paying healthcare providers that promote quality, integration of care, and long-term wellness

• Find a better way to talk about death in our society, and appropriate care at end of life.