UNITED STATES OF CARE CAMPAIGN

POLICY AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS: UNITED STATES OF CARE LISTENS TO PEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND WORKS TO DEVELOP AND ENACT SOLUTIONS TO BUILD THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM THAT BETTER MEETS PEOPLE'S NEEDS. IN 2024, UNITED STATES OF CARE CONTINUED TO BUILD AND HARNESS OUR KNOWLEDGE BASE ABOUT PEOPLE AND THEIR HEALTH CARE EXPERIENCES TO SHAPE DURABLE CHANGE. WE COMPLETED MIXED METHODS RESEARCH ON PEOPLE'S ATTITUDES ABOUT PRIMARY CARE AND CONDUCTED POLLING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW PEOPLE THINK ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) AND HEALTH CARE, BRIEFING MEDIA AND KEY STAKEHOLDERS ON RELEVANT FINDINGS. IN ORDER TO EFFECTIVELY HARNESS OUR DATA FROM ALL OUR RESEARCH, WE SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED AN INTERNAL DATA SEARCH TOOL, WHICH REPRESENTS A SIGNIFICANT ADVANCEMENT IN THE ORGANIZATION'S INFRASTRUCTURE, STREAMLINING ACCESS TO CRITICAL INFORMATION AND ENHANCING RESEARCH EFFICIENCY ACROSS ALL PROJECTS. WE LAUNCHED THE 100 WEEKS INITIATIVE, AN AMBITIOUS PROGRAM THAT AIMS TO ENSURE EVERY NEW MOTHER RECEIVES THE ESSENTIAL CARE AND SUPPORT SHE NEEDS DURING THE CRITICAL POSTPARTUM PERIOD, UP TO ONE YEAR AFTER PREGNANCY. OUR TEAM DEVELOPED AND RELEASED A VARIETY OF POLICY RESOURCES AND RECOMMENDATIONS IN SUPPORT OF THIS INITIATIVE, PAIRED WITH OUR UNIQUE UNDERSTANDING OF WOMEN'S EXPERIENCES DURING PREGNANCY, CHILDBIRTH AND POSTPARTUM. WE KNOW THAT THE COST OF CARE REMAINS A TOP CONCERN FOR PEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY, WHICH SHAPED OUR WORK AT THE STATE AND FEDERAL LEVEL IN 2024. UNITED STATES OF CARE STRATEGICALLY ADVANCED POLICY AND CULTIVATED MOMENTUM IN STATES ACROSS THE COUNTRY IN SERVICE OF OUR GOAL TO MAKE HEALTH CARE MORE AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE FOR PEOPLE. TO THIS END, WE PURSUED TWO KEY STRATEGIES: PROVIDING STATE-SPECIFIC POLICY RESEARCH AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ON A VARIETY OF HEALTH CARE ACCESS AND AFFORDABILITY POLICY TOPICS, AND CREATING SPACES FOR STATE POLICYMAKERS AND PARTNERS TO COLLABORATE AND SHARE INFORMATION.IN THE FIRST STRATEGY, UNITED STATES OF CARE CONDUCTED STATE-SPECIFIC POLLING IN TWO STATES, PROVIDED SUPPORT FOR STATE-SPECIFIC POLICY IMPLEMENTATION, AND CONDUCTED STATE SPECIFIC POLICY RESEARCH RESULTING IN THE PUBLICATION OF MULTIPLE RESOURCES ON AFFORDABILITY AND ACCESS POLICIES. IN PURSUIT OF THE SECOND STRATEGY, UNITED STATES OF CARE AUTHORED SEVERAL LONG-FORM REPORTS ON STATE TRENDS RELATED TO AFFORDABILITY AND ACCESS POLICIES INCLUDING A FOCUS ON STATE FACILITY FEE LAWS, HOSPITAL PRICING, CONSOLIDATION, AND INSURANCE AFFORDABILITY. FURTHER, WE FACILITATED MULTIPLE WEBINARS AND OTHER VIRTUAL CONVENINGS FOR STATE-BASED PARTNERS TO GATHER AND SHARE INFORMATION ON THESE SAME TOPICS. THESE EFFORTS ACROSS BOTH STRATEGIES WERE INTENTIONALLY SYNERGISTIC WITH THE ADVOCACY WORK OF OUR SISTER C4 ORGANIZATION, UNITED STATES OF CARE ACTION.USOFCARE CONTINUED OUR WORK TO PROTECT PEOPLE'S ACCESS TO NO-COST PREVENTIVE SERVICES, WHICH HAS BEEN THREATENED BY THE PENDING KENNEDY V. BRAIDWOOD MANAGEMENT INC. (FORMERLY BRAIDWOOD MANAGEMENT VS. BECERRA) CASE SEEKING TO DISMANTLE THE PREVENTIVE SERVICE COVERAGE REQUIRED BY THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT. USOFCARE WORKED TO ADVANCE POLICIES AT THE STATE LEVEL THAT WOULD MAINTAIN THESE PROTECTIONS SHOULD THE CASE RESULT IN AN ADVERSE OUTCOME FOR CONSUMERS, TESTIFYING ON LEGISLATION IN WASHINGTON STATE, UPDATED AND RE-PUBLISHED RESOURCES ON OUR PREVENTIVE SERVICES HUB WITH TIMELY CASE UPDATES, AND WORKED TO EDUCATE STATE PARTNERS AND POLICYMAKERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY THROUGH NEWSLETTERS, WEBINARS AND SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS. USOFCARE GREW OUR FEDERAL FOOTPRINT, FOCUSING ON ADVANCING AFFORDABILITY AND VALUE-BASED CARE (ALSO KNOWN AS "PATIENT-FIRST CARE") REFORMS WHILE LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR FEDERAL IMPACT IN 2025 REGARDLESS OF THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE. THIS ENTAILED A PROLIFIC NUMBER OF FORMAL COMMENT LETTERS AND SUBMISSIONS LEVERAGING THE ORGANIZATION'S LISTENING RESEARCH, BRINGING EVERYDAY, ON-THE-GROUND PERSPECTIVES TO REINFORCE POLICY POSITIONS ACROSS PROPOSED RULES. WE CONTINUED OUR ENGAGEMENT AND EDUCATION OF KEY CONGRESSIONAL OFFICES ON PRICING REFORMS VIA STATEMENTS FOR THE RECORD, RFI RESPONSES, AND FORMAL COMMENTS TO PROPOSED LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORKS.ACROSS BOTH OUR ADMINISTRATIVE AND CONGRESSIONAL WORK, WE CONTINUED TO EDUCATE POLICYMAKERS AND KEY STAFF ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PATIENT-FIRST CARE REFORMS THAT FOCUS ON QUALITY OF CARE AS OPPOSED TO THE QUANTITY OF SERVICES PROVIDED. WE CREATED AND RELEASED POLICY PRINCIPLES TO HELP ACHIEVE PATIENT-FIRST CARE AND HELD A WEBINAR AND EVENT WITH KEY HILL STAFF AND STAKEHOLDERS TO HELP DISSEMINATE OUR WORK.

COMMUNICATIONS - IN 2024, OUR TEAM CONTINUED TO SIGNIFICANTLY ELEVATE OUR MEDIA PRESENCE AND POSITION THE ORGANIZATION AS A TRUSTED VOICE ON PEOPLE-CENTERED HEALTH CARE POLICY. USOFCARE EXPERTS SHARED THE ORGANIZATION'S PERSPECTIVE IN MORE THAN 30 INTERVIEWS, GENERATING 81 MEDIA MENTIONS ON OUR PRIORITY ISSUES. WE BUILT AND LAUNCHED SEVERAL DEDICATED WEBSITES TO SHARE OUR FINDINGS. THIS INCLUDES A DEDICATED PATIENT-FIRST CARE WEBSITE, OFFERING VALUABLE RESOURCES, MESSAGING GUIDANCE, AND A QUIZ TO HIGHLIGHT THE DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN PATIENT-FIRST CARE AND FEE-FOR-SERVICE MODELS. TO SHARE OUR AI IN HEALTH CARE POLL, ALONG WITH OTHER RESOURCES ON POLICY IMPLICATIONS, WE LAUNCHED AN ACCOUNTABLE INNOVATION RESOURCE HUB WEBSITE. THESE EFFORTS UNDERSCORE OUR ONGOING COMMITMENT TO TRANSFORMING HEALTH CARE AND SHAPING PUBLIC DISCOURSE.