Building Upon The Cornerstones

Mayo Clinic believes that American health care urgently needs reform to ensure the future of quality patient care. Recognizing that widespread consensus and collaboration will be essential to successful health care reform, Mayo Clinic formed its Health Policy Center and hosted an inaugural symposium in May 2006. During the subsequent two years, the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center has convened more than 2,000 stakeholders — everyone from patients to national thought leaders — for a series of events to help develop new, consensus-driven principles and specific action steps to accelerate the reform process. This report summarizes the Health Policy Center's recommendations to date and lays out a course for advancing these ideas.

To reform health care, participants in Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center programs – including providers, academics, medical industry leaders, businesspeople, insurers, political leaders and patients — recommend four areas of focus.

Create Value

Improve patient health outcomes and satisfaction with U.S. health care. Decrease medical errors, costs and waste. Read details.

Coordinate Care

To increase value, patient care services must be coordinated across people, functions, activities, locations and time. Patients must actively participate in this process. Read details.

Reform the Payment System

Change the way providers are paid in order to improve health and minimize waste. Read details.

Provide Health Insurance for All

Provide guaranteed, portable health insurance for all individuals, giving them choice, control and peace of mind. Read details.