Benefits

What should be included in a health care benefit package? Balancing access to comprehensive benefits with cost is tricky business, and this dilemma is increasingly evident as many states try to cover more residents with limited access to financing.

We took this issue on the road yesterday and participated in an important discussion with state policymakers at the National Governors Association's "Defining Benefit Packages in Health Reform" meeting in Philadelphia.

There were at least three main points we took away from this conversation:

1. Financing health care must be a shared responsibility between the federal government, state government, individuals and sometimes employers, if it is to be affordable;
2. Determining the minimum set of required benefits is a value-based, community discussion that lends itself to regional differences;
3. Providing access to and incentives for preventative care is the most important goal of many state reforms.