nsg 4055 Healthy People 2020 objectives for Access to Care DQ
nsg 4055 Healthy People 2020 objectives for Access to Care DQ
Respond to one of the following questions:
Review the Healthy People 2020 objectives for Access to
Care. Of all the objectives listed under this topic, which do you think would
be most beneficial to the patients with chronic illness? Please give rationales
and support responses with references.
Discuss how you feel nurses can positively impact the
Healthy People 2020 goals.
Citations should conform to APA guidelines. You may use this
APA Citation Helper as a convenient reference for properly citing resources or
connect to the APA Style website through the APA icon below.
The Healthy People 2020 (HP2020) goal for access to health services is to “improve access to comprehensive, quality healthcare services.”1 Such services are vital for achieving health equity and increasing the quality of life for everyone.2 In the United States, many people do not receive timely and appropriate care.3 About one in four Americans lack a health center to receive regular medical services and a primary care provider, and almost one in five Americans under age 65 years do not have medical insurance coverage.4 The HP2020 topic focuses on four components of access to care: coverage, services, timeliness, and workforce.5
This document has been developed for members of the public interested in law and health policy topics related to access and use of health services. It provides selected legal and policy resources addressing health insurance coverage, access to clinical preventive services, reducing emergency department visit and wait time, and increasing the number of practicing primary care providers.
Evidence-based preventive services are cost-effective and cost-saving services that reduce death and
disability.8F
9 Preventive services include screening tests, vaccinations, counseling, early disease detection,
health information, and prophylactic medication.9F
10 The following resources explore a variety of laws and
policies that address access to preventive services.10F
11
NAT’L PREVENTIVE COUNCIL, National Prevention Strategy: Clinical and Community Preventive
Services (May 2014).
Nedereh Pourat, Ana E. Martinez, James J. Crall, Better Together: Co-Location of Dental and
Primary Care Provides Opportunities to Improve Oral Health, UCLA Center for Health Policy
Research (Sept. 2015).
Janet Currie and Maya Rossin-Slater, Early-life Origins of Lifecycle Well-being: Research and
Policy Implications, 34(1) J. OF POLICY ANALYSIS & MGMT. 208–42 (2015).
KAISER FAMILY FOUND., Preventive Services Covered by Private Health Plans Under the Affordable
Care Act (Aug. 2015).
Reducing Emergency Department Visit and Wait Time
Long waits at the emergency department (ED) can lead to decreased patient satisfaction, delays in care,
and increases in patients leaving medical facilities before receiving care.11F
12 The HP2020 project hopes to
reduce the proportion of hospital ED visits in which the wait time to see an ED clinician exceeds the
recommended timeframe.12F
13 The resources below explore some of these approaches.
9 NAT’L PREVENTIVE COUNCIL, National Prevention Strategy: Clinical and Community Preventive Services (May 2014).
10 Id.
11 Related HP2020 objectives includes Objective #2 (Increase the proportion of insured persons with coverage for
clinical preventive services), and #7 (increase the proportion of persons who receive appropriate evidence-based
clinical preventive services).
12 US DEP’T OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVS., Access to Health Services: Overview (updated Mar. 2016).
13 HP2020 Access to Health Services Objective #9 (reduce the proportion of hospital emergency department visits
in which the wait time to see an emergency department clinician exceeds the recommended timeframe).
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CTRS. FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVS., CMCS Informational Bulletin: Reducing Nonurgent Use of
Emergency Departments and Improving Appropriate Care in Appropriate Settings (Jan. 2014).
CTRS. FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVS., Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting Program (modified
Sept. 2013).
THE COMMONWEALTH FUND, A Difference-in-Difference Analysis of Changes in Quality, Utilization
and Cost Following the Colorado Multi-Payer Patient-Centered Medical Home Pilot (Oct. 2015).
NAT’L CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES, Health Cost Containment and Efficiencies: Medical
Homes (Sept. 2010).
Increasing the Number of Practicing Primary Care Providers
Primary care providers play an important role in the healthcare system.13F
14 People who have a regular
primary care provider have greater trust in their provider, communicate better with their provider, and
are more likely to receive appropriate care.14F
15 The resources listed below explore the role laws and
policies can play in achieving related HP2020 objectives.15F
16
KAISER FAMILY FOUND., The ACA Primary Care Increase: State Plans for SFY 2015 (Oct. 2014).
US DEP’T OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVS., Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Creating Health Care
Jobs by Addressing Primary Care Workforce Needs (Mar. 2015).
NAT’L CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES, Meeting the Primary Care Needs of Rural America:
Examining the Role of Non-Physician Providers (Apr. 2013).
Melinda Abrams, Rachel Nuzum, Stephanie Mika et al., Realizing Health Reform’s Potential: How
the Affordable Care Act Will Strengthen Primary Care and Benefit Patients, Providers, and Payers
(Jan. 2011).
Acknowledgments and Disclaimers
This document was developed by Julia Charles, JD, Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education fellow
with the Public Health Law Program (PHLP) within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s
Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support, with assistance from Adebola Popoola, MS, MPH,
an intern with PHLP and law student at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School.
For further technical assistance with this inventory, please contact PHLP at phlawprogram@cdc.gov.
PHLP provides technical assistance and public health law resources to advance the use of law as a public
health tool. PHLP cannot provide legal advice on any issue and cannot represent any individual or entity
in any matter. PHLP recommends seeking the advice of an attorney or other qualified professional with
14 US DEP’T OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVS., Access to Health Services: Overview (updated Mar. 2016). 15 Id. 16 Healthy People 2020 Access to Health Services Objective #4 (increase the number of practicing primary care
providers).
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questions regarding the application of law to a specific circumstance. The findings and conclusions in this
summary are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
For further technical assistance with this inventory and for questions regarding the HP2020 Law and
Health Policy Project, please contact Angela McGowan at angela.mcgowan@hhs.gov.