Rebalancing Health Care in the Heartland

Background

Purpose: The University of Iowa is pleased to be part of a statewide effort to convene a series of forums that support Iowa’s policymakers in their efforts to improve the provision of health care to all Iowans. To date, this series has included three forums, gathering representatives from health care institutions, insurance, business and industry, labor, education, special populations, associations, advocates, local, state, and federal elected officials and leaders, and consumers. These forums – held in 2006, 2007, and 2008 – have provided opportunities for information sharing and thoughtful public discussion of critical health policy issues facing Iowa.

Background and Rationale: The Rebalancing Health Care in the Heartland forum series facilitates a public discussion about health care in Iowa. The forums define key challenges in providing high quality health care across Iowa; assess the potential impact of contemporary economic, demographic, and political realities; debate strategies and identify viable solutions for consideration by Iowa’s policymakers, and anticipate new and emerging trends that may impact the provision of high quality health care to the people of Iowa.

The University of Iowa, led by its Health Sciences Policy Council, is proud to be a sponsor of these critical and timely discussions. As a publicly supported academic institution, the University is uniquely positioned to provide a non-partisan forum for the consideration of issues of public interest and concern.