National Health Conference Fall Agenda

National Health Conference/Standing Committee on Health
[Concurrent with Fall Forum]
December 8-10, 2004
Savannah, Georgia

Savannah International Trade and Convention Center
Preliminary Agenda

(as of December 6, 2004)

Meeting Brochure Cover

Wednesday, December 8

12:00 pm - 5:15 pm
Gallery, 2nd Floor Registration

12:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Gallery, 2nd Floor Exhibits Open

1:00 pm - 3:45 pm
Ballroom B, 2nd Floor
Welcome: Delegate John Adams Hurson, President, NCSL, Maryland

Presiding: Senator Donne Trotter, Illinois and Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health
Spencer Pratt, Senior Fiscal Analyst, Legislative Fiscal Office, Utah and Staff Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

NCSL’s Legislative Healthy Lifestyles Competition Announcement: Representative Pamela Maier, Delaware

Opening Plenary:

The Medicare Modernization Act: Implications for the States
1:00 pm - 2:15 pm--Overview of the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA)
This session will review the major areas where the MMA will impact states and include a discussion of the treatment Medicaid/Medicare dual eligibles and the states' responsibilities regarding the implementation of the new Medicare drug benefit program.

Speaker: Donna A. Boswell, Partner, Health Group, Hogan & Hartson, L.L.P., Washington, D.C.

2:30 pm - 3:45 pm--State Employee Retiree Health Benefits Under MMA: Options, Opportunities and Perils
The MMA includes incentives for employers, including state and local governments, to maintain their existing retiree health benefits programs. This creates new options, opportunities and perils for state governments. This session will review the options, the opportunities and yes, the perils of this new program.

Speaker: Derek Guyton, Mercer Human Resources Consulting, Chicago, Illinois

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Westin Hotel, Grand AB
Plenary Session--Health Care Politics: Where We've Been and Where We're Going
(Joint session with Fall Forum)

This session will review the major health stories of 2004, reflect on what are likely to be the major health stories for 2005 and how the recent state and national elections may play a role in determining these issues and ultimately what all this means for health care in America.

Welcome: Representative Terry Coleman, Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives

Speakers: John Andew Miller, Staff Writer, Business News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia
Todd Sloane Assistant Managing Editor/Op-Ed, Modern Healthcare Magazine, Chicago, Illinois

6:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Gallery, 2nd Floor

Reception

Thursday, December 9

7:00 am - 8:00 am
Gallery, 2nd Floor Continental Breakfast

7:30 am - 4:45 pm
Gallery, 2nd Floor Registration

7:30 am - 4:45 pm
Gallery, 2nd Floor Exhibits Open

8:00 am - 9:45 am

Ballroom A

Ballroom C

Gwinnett, 1st Floor

Concurrent Sessions

Innovations in State Health Reform
Necessity continues to be the mother of invention as states work to make health care affordable for their citizens. This session will include an overview of state reform activities during these difficult economic times and highlight three state examples. Come to this session to learn about innovative state efforts to stretch the health care dollar.

Moderator: Senator Donne Trotter, Illinois and Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speaker: Sharon Silow-Carrol, Senior Vice-President, Economic and Social Research Institute, Washington, D.C.
Karl Ideman, President, Pool Administrators, Inc., Wethersfield, Connecticut
Theresa Wyatt, Deputy Administrator, Medical Programs, Illinois Department of Public Aid, Springfield, Illinois
Adam Thompson, Legislative Liaison, Governor's Office of Health Policy and Finance, Augusta, Maine

New Lessons in Long-Term Care
In 2003, long-term care accounted for a third of Medicaid expenditures, and demographic pressures will increase its importance in the future. States continue to seek strategies to meet consumers' needs and preferences, ensure services are safe and high quality, and control costs. This session will discuss three "hot topics" in long-term care--insurance, managed long-term care, and consumer direction--and offer state options for revamping this critical area of health care delivery.

Moderator: Senator Dennis Byars, Nebraska and Vice-Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speakers: Susan Reinhard, Co-Director, Center for State Health Policy, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey
John O'Leary, Principal, Long-Term Care Strategies, North Andover, Massachusetts
Marc Gold, Director, Medicaid Long-Term Care Policy, Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Austin, Texas

Rural Health and Economic Development
Rural Americans are disproportionately poor, underinsured, uninsured, and are at higher risk for chronic disease, unintended injury and communicable disease than their urban counterparts. In recent years, several states have been working collaboratively to address these concerns. This session will highlight successful approaches that have strengthened rural economies and improved access to health care such as revolving loan funds, practice management services, recruitment and retention strategies, rural health leader's pipeline programs and rural health networks.

Moderator: Jennifer Riggle, Coordinator, State-Based Activities, Office of Rural Health, Health Resources and Services Administration, Rockville, Maryland

Speakers: Senator Evan Jenkins, West Virginia
Marsha Broussard, Director, Louisiana Rural Health Access Program, New Orleans, Louisiana
Elaine Wootten, Deputy Director, Arkansas Southern Rural Access Program, University of Arkansas, School of Public Health, Little Rock, Arkansas

10:00 am - 11:45 am

Ballroom C

Ballroom A

Gwinnett, 1st Floor

Concurrent Sessions

Redesigning Medicaid: New Attempts at Reform
Managing Medicaid costs while maintaining access to coverage continues to challenge state policymakers. A few states are proposing substantial "Medicaid redesign" projects. This session will address the goals of Medicaid redesign in the states, options under consideration, the role of legislators and other stakeholders, and implications for states. Hear a national speaker frame the issue and two state officials discuss their redesign efforts.

Moderator: Senator Maggie Tinsman, Iowa and Vice-Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speakers: Mari Spaulding-Bynon, State Coverage Initiative Project Coordinator, Medical Assistance Division, Human Services Department, New Mexico
Barbara Coulter Edwards, Deputy Director, Ohio Health Plans, Department of Jobs and Family, Columbus, Ohio
Charles Milligan, Executive Director, Center for Health Programs, Management and Development, University of Maryland, Baltimore City, Maryland

Methamphetamine: The Science of the Addiction
Stories on the production of methamphetamine, meth lab clean-up and foster care issues, penalties for meth possession and sale, and other meth issues fill the headlines. At the root of all this media attention is a highly addictive, brain altering drug. Come learn from the nation's leading methamphetamine addiction researchers about the science of methamphetamine addiction, how to effectively treat this addiction, and how successful treatment allows the brain to recover from serious impairments.

Moderator: Representative Peter Batula, New Hampshire and Vice-Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speakers: Darryl S. Inaba, Chief Executive Officer, Haight Ashbury Free Clinics, San Francisco, California
Timothy P. Condon, Deputy Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, Maryland

Current Issues in the Provision of Excellent End-of-Life Care
Effective pain relief is legally available everywhere, but far too few patients with terminal illnesses receive it and therefore suffer needlessly near the end of life. Many health professionals are unwilling to use available resources because they fear they will be prosecuted or disciplined. A growing strain between regulating legitimate prescribing practices and preventing drug abuse and drug trafficking further complicates the issue. Among the important issues to be addressed at this session are factors affecting the effectiveness of adequacy of pain management and elements of effective state legislation promoting appropriate pain management.

Moderator: L. Carol Shaw, Principal Fiscal Analyst, North Carolina and Staff-Vice Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speakers: Kathryn Tucker, Director, Legal Affairs, Compassion in Dying, Seattle, Washington
David Joranson, Senior Scientist, Director, W.H.O Collaborating Center for Policy, University of Wisconsin, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Madison, Wisconsin
William Sorrell, Attorney General, Montpelier, Vermont

12:00 noon - 1:30 pm
Ballroom B

"Meet the Experts" Lunch
Experts on a wide variety of current state health policy topics will be available to discuss latest trends, issues, research and practices.

1:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Gwinnett, 1st Floor

Ballroom A

Ballroom C

Concurrent Sessions

Do Healthy Lifestyles Mean Healthier State Budgets?
Chronic conditions are the leading cause of death and disability in the United States. The impact of chronic diseases on state Medicaid and Medicare budgets will grow as our population ages. What are states doing to prevent or delay the onset of chronic diseases among their citizens. This session will present state approaches to prevention and cost management when treatment is needed.

Moderator: Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, New York

Speaker: Representative Pam Maier, Delaware
Dennis Joyner, Director, Carolina's Community Health Institute, Charlotte, North Carolina
George Mensah, Acting Director, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

Finding Solutions in the Private Health Insurance Market
Five years of double-digit inflation in health premiums have alarmed employers and state policymakers alike. Innovative employers, private and public, are using strategies that combine cost containment with appropriate health care coverage. Hear three national experts share their experiences and alternatives for further policymaking such as consumer-directed plans, cost-sharing, bulk buying, tax incentives and more.

Moderator: Representative Michelle Henson, Georgia

Speakers: William S. Custer, Associate Professor, Risk Management and Insurance, Robison College of Business, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
Roy Ramthun, Senior Advisor for Health Initiatives, U.S. Treasury Department, Washington, D.C.
George L. Atkins, Strategic Counsel, America's Health Insurance Plans, Washington, D.C.

Shaking the Piggy Bank: An Update on Financing Children's Health
The 8-year-old State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) provides access to health care for nearly 6 million low-income children. Many states once again faced budget shortfalls as the $1.1 billion in unspent federal SCHIP funding approached the deadline requiring such funds to revert to the Federal Treasury at the end of the fiscal year. This session will feature experts in Medicaid and SCHIP financing who will discuss the current state of SCHIP funding, federal legislation introduced to save these funds for the states, and state experiences with SCHIP financing issues.

Moderator: Honorable Dennis Arakaki, State Representative, Hawaii

Speakers: Senator Jeannemarie Devolites Davis, Virginia
Dennis Smith, Director, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Baltimore, Maryland
Victoria Wachino, Health Policy Director, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Washington, D.C.

3:15 pm - 4:45 pm
Ballroom C

A Walk and a Talk: Can State Policies Create a Physically Active Community?
After sitting in meetings, this session will get you moving. Join us for a presentation about how the built environment can integrate physical activity into daily life and how states are translating research into policy. Then, take a break to change into clothing appropriate for physical activity and, weather permitting, join NCSL staff for a walk or enjoy a yoga class.

Speaker: Mark Fenton, Host, PBS television series "America’s Walking" and Consultant, Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, University of North Carolina

6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Grand A-C

Reception at the Westin

Friday, December 10

8:00 am - 9:00 pm
Westin, Harbor B Continental Breakfast at the Westin

9:00 am - 10:30 am
Westin, Harbor B

At the Westin
Special Briefing:
Quality Health Care: An Impossible Task Without a Team
A renewed interest in patient safety and value purchasing of health care services has pushed the issue of health care workforce shortages to the forefront of state legislative agendas. The nation faces shortages of physicians, nurses and a broad range of other professionals, paraprofessionals, therapists and support staff. Clinical educators are becoming more difficult to find, forcing schools to limit enrollment and contributing to the shrinking pipeline of health care workers. This session will look at innovative approaches to protect and improve our health care delivery system by preserving adequate levels of health care workers.

Moderator: Senator Donne Trotter, Illinois and Chair, NCSL Standing Committee on Health

Speakers: Daniel W. Rahn, President, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia
Cheryl Feldman, Executive Director, Workforce Program, 1199c Training and Upgrading Fund, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
P.J. Maddox, Director, Office of Research, Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia

10:45 am - 12:00 am
Westin, Harbor A
Fall Forum Business Session

12:15 - 1:30 pm
Westin, Grand ABC

Closing Plenary:
As the Dust Settles: An Analysis of the 2004 National and State Elections
The 2004 election results and their affect on state legislatures will be analyzed and discussed at this time.

Speaker: Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, Washington, D.C.

1:30 pm
Adjourn