Quality & Value of Care
The American Heart Association is working across the country to support policies that promote health care that is safe, effective, patient-centered, timely and equitable. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has reported that it takes an average of 17 years to translate new medical knowledge into actual practice and even then, patient access to the most effective care is highly uneven. Improvements to the healthcare delivery system that speed new knowledge and better care coordination to medical professionals are essential to reducing death and disability from cardiovascular disease and to providing quality care.
Our federal advocacy priorities for quality care help ensure that coverage policies are evidence-based and reflect AHA’s clinical practice guidelines. We comment on federal regulations and coverage decisions based on the best possible science and also support payment and delivery system reforms that result in high value cardiovascular care for patients. We also support the development of quality measures that are tied to the best possible clinical evidence.
Policies related to quality and value also help support the caregiving environment and improve advanced illness and palliative care.
All policies recognize the need to advance health equity for minorities, women, the elderly, and low-income populations.
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