By an overwhelming majority, leaders in health care and health policy think the new reform law will successfully expand access to affordable health insurance to millions of Americans. The latest Commonwealth Fund/Modern Healthcare Health Care Opinion Leaders survey also found that nearly all key features of the health reform law—including income-related subsidies, new insurance market rules, and innovative payment methods—are supported by a large majority of opinion leaders.
Looking toward implementation, respondents identified the nation's supply of primary care providers, states' capacity to implement reform, and enforcement of the individual mandate as areas of potential concern. Longer term, opinion leaders believe that improved affordability provisions for low- and moderate-income families, prevention and control of chronic disease, and stronger cost controls are the most important issues to be readdressed in the next two to three years.
Commentaries by Michael Leavitt , former Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Tom Daschle, former Senate Majority Leader, offer perspectives on the new law.
