Health Reform Strategy in New Jersey Essay

Introduction

The healthcare system of the USA has been a subject of constant debates for many decades. It is notorious for being one of the most expensive healthcare systems in the world. According to statistics, US healthcare spending has reached a point of 3.2 trillion dollars (“National health expenditures,” 2015). At the same time, the country’s healthcare system remains notoriously inefficient due to exorbitant prices, differences in care quality depending on the region, access, and outcomes. Calls for reforms were made on both state and federal scales.

Unlike with federal reforms, state healthcare reforms are easier to implement due to the smaller scale and the fact that the reform has to work within one system of regional policies rather than stretch out across the entire country and deal with differences in state laws and regulations. Most reforms target one of the several specific areas, such as the payment model, data collection, safety promotions, welfare programs, and others. The purpose of this paper is to review the healthcare reform strategy in New Jersey promoted by Horizon Healthcare Services.Health Reform Strategy in New Jersey Essay

Payment Reforms

As it stands, the American healthcare system operates on a fee-for-service payment system. This system has been around for many decades but has glaring inefficiencies. It prioritizes individual payments and the volume of spent resources over quality or results. Also, this system allows for malpractices and makes the providers interested in making the patients undergo unnecessary or downright harmful treatments to extract more money. Both healthcare providers and insurance companies have been experimenting with several systems that could potentially replace fee-for-service payments. These include reimbursements for quality treatment, bundled payments, managed care systems, global payments, and Accountable Care Organizations.Health Reform Strategy in New Jersey Essay

These new payment designs are being tested on several state levels, and are driving innovation in terms of healthcare payment and delivery systems. Although the degrees of success vary from one state to another, they provide valuable data for medical professionals and legislators and ensure that the overall health system is moving towards improved outcomes, affordable costs, and better access to healthcare.Health Reform Strategy in New Jersey Essay