Drug, the cocktail, i could accurately predict and say we can do Mathematical Modeling to say that if you take your medicine regularly you could live an additional 55 years. To go from knowing 50 percent of the people are going to die and eight months to knowing if you take your medicines you could essentially live a normal life span, just a little bit less than normal, that is a huge advance. Dr. Anthony feltfalchi. Next, silvio barwell on Global Health security. Then remarks from the incoming chair of the National Endowment for the humanities. Indiana governor mike pence gives his state of the state speech. Health and Human Services secretary silvio barwell says it is time to find Common Ground on the health care law. She made her comments in washington dc. She talked about the need for investments in Global Health security. This is 35 minutes. Good morning. Welcome, everybody, two new america. Before i introduce secretary burwell, who is here to make remarks about the future of health care on a number of dimensions in the new congress and the year ahead, i just want to make a few quick comments about new america and why we are so honored that we are able to host her here today for these remarks. Among the founding principles of new america, which is reflected in the book the radical center by people who are among the founders of this organization 15 years ago, was a commitment to get beyond traditional partisan alignment and specifically to apply that idea to health care to treat it as a matter of both rights and responsibilities, and something that should be vested in individuals and people, not just some jobs and not others, and to improve care and not just coverage. Over the following years, the middle of the last decade, new Americas Health program, which was led by others worked to put that vision into place. Particularly in the period 2006, 2008 this organization and Lynn Nicholls created a space for bipartisan and most importantly cross ideological conversation that ultimately it was wonderful to see it happen ultimately resulted in legislation that by 2008 had 10 cosponsors from each party and and a piece of legislation that in some ways went further that the Affordable Care act, but not in others. In my work on political reform one of the things that we have done is try to look at the kind of situations where government can get things done, even in the situation where people have deep disagreements about values. And in doing that, i still look at that, the work new america did 10 years ago as a fascinating example because it reaffirmed for me a very basic truth, that when people share a commitment to getting something done, when they agree that the status quo isnt good enough, and they are willing to talk to each other, then even if there are very deep differences about what to do and how to do it, but if people are willing to talk to each other, anythings possible. And people can find Solutions Even without giving up their core beliefs. I think secretary burwell will tell us we are on the verge of an era where we can begin to have that conversation again. Im also looking forward to hearing secretary burwells thoughts about innovation and how the government can do better. Last week two longstanding Board Members of new america published a wonderful article highlighting some of the ways in which the Affordable Care act was encouraging innovation reducing costs, while improving care. They concluded the article, 25 years from now we hope historians look back on the Affordable Care act as the start of a new era of publicprivate collaboration to develop Innovative Solutions to complex social problems and thus to restore trust in government will itself. We share that confidence. Now, i want to introduce secretary burwell. When our staff said you need secretary burwells biography, i really know her biography because, when i was in government, she was a hotshot in government. When i worked in philanthropy later, she was a hotshot there. Ill do the full bio anyway. She was sworn in in june as the 22nd secretary of health and Human Services, a smaller club than i would have thought. Before that, she served as director of the office of management and budget, where she worked closely with congress to restore order to the budget and appropriations processes. Before coming back to the government and rejoining this administration, she was president of the Walmart Foundation in arkansas during a period when that foundation surpassed 1 billion in total giving. For 10 years before that, she was president of the Global Development program at the bill and Melinda Gates foundation in seattle, washington, an extremely large foundation, and works on a huge range of issues from vaccinations and Childrens Health agricultural development, and she was the foundations first chief operating officer. During the Clinton Administration she served as in administration she served as Deputy Director of o. M. B. , chief of staff to the secretary of the treasury, and staff director of the National Economic council. She was born and raised in west virginia, received her a. B. From harvard and a degree from a oxford. We are pleased to have her here. Let me do a quick logistical thing. After remarks, well have questions and answers. You have cards for questions. Please put your question on it and your name. Well go through it and ill call on people and youll say your question, but we want to do it efficiently with the cards first. With all that, secretary burwell, we are pleased to have you. [applause] thank you very much, mark. Appreciate it. And its great to be here at the new America Foundation. Mark twain once said that you cant depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. And i think the great thing about the new America Foundation is that you work to refocus our collective imagination on the things we can do together to renew american prosperity, and thats a very important thing and why i think this is the ideal place for me to be to reflect upon the values and interests and priorities that we have in common as americans and in the broader sense as citizens of a shrinking planet. I have long believed that across the globe, regardless of your nationality or your financial status, that we all basically have the same desires for our children and that is we want them to live healthy and productive lives. And as the mother of a 7 and 5yearold, i share that dream as well. Im a believer in the notion that people who share common interests and Common Dreams ought to be able to find Common Ground. And thats what i want to talk with you about today. I truly believe that there are a number of things where we have an opportunity and in fact a responsibility to get done together in this new year, working across the aisle and working across different sectors. This is especially true in health care, where our system is on the threshold of both positive and i believe transformational change. There are also opportunities that flow from the innovations in science and medicine that are being advanced by american scientists, researchers, and entrepreneurs. Many of these innovations are redefining the boundaries of progress. At the same time, they are opening the promise of a new innovation economy. The opportunities before us are good for families, they are good for business, they are good for the economy, they are good for taxpayers. There are things we can get done if we Work Together. And i believe there is a shared interest on both sides of the aisle and with business and Civil Society communities in moving them forward. At the same time, the new year did bring in a new round of efforts to repeal the Affordable Care act. These efforts are happening despite increasing evidence that the law is working. Millions more americans have access to quality, Affordable Care, some for the first time. Whats more, millions of americans who are already insured are benefiting from the law as well. As you can imagine, i will be vigorous in making the case this law is working and families, businesses, and taxpayers are better off as a result. I believe this firmly, and as i have traveled around the country i have been told by people that i have met they are not concerned about the next headline. What they are concerned about is the next generation. They want us to stop the back andforth, to move forward, and to focus on the substance. And thats really what i want to talk about today. I count myself among those who do not believe that disagreements in some areas, even significant disagreements should prevent us from moving forward on others. Medicaid expansion is an example. Governors from 27 states plus d. C. , including those who disagree on elements of the Affordable Care act, have reached the same conclusion expansion is good for the people and the economies of their states. And some who have not yet expanded have expressed interest in moving forward, states like wyoming, indiana and utah. I want to see all 50 states expand in ways that work for their states. And we will work with governors from both parties to try to make that happen. There are other critical areas in health care where our common interests give us ample opportunities for common good, improving the quality of care we receive while spending our dollars more wisely, reducing Substance Use disorders and overdose deaths, strengthening Global Health security, reaffirming American Leadership in research, innovation, and science, and building an innovation economy. Lets start with our Health Care System. For all the differences of opinion about how to move forward, there is one area which we have unanimous agreement, and thats that the system thats been in place for 50 years has underdelivered on access affordability, and quality. You could almost sum it up with the prices we paid far outweighed the progress that we made. Health costs grew significantly faster than things like g. D. P. And middleclass family incomes. We all saw the effects of a system that did not spend our Health Care Dollars as wisely as we could have. However, over the last several years we started making significant progress, thanks in large part to the Affordable Care act. Its now within our common interest to build a Health Care Delivery system thats better smarter, and healthier a system that delivers better care, a system that spends Health Care Dollars more wisely, a system that keeps us healthy rather than waiting for care when we get sick a system where medical information and medical bills are easy to understand a system that puts information in the hands of patients and doctors and empowers them to make better choices. If we do this, we will leave a legacy for our children and our grandchildren. As i have met with members of congress from both parties, they have told me they want a better system, too. They want to tackle Health Care Associated infections, so we keep patients safer when they are in the hospital and healthier when they are out of it. We are already making progress as a country. We have achieved a 17 reduction in harms nationwide since 2010 and members of congress from both parties also share our interest in payment innovation. We all want to find better ways to reward quality and highvalue care in the system. There are opportunities to Work Together on putting better information in the hands of patients and their doctors and building a more transparent system. We have had fruitful discussions with congress about supporting the interoperability of our information and Health Care System. We also share members interest in expanding access to medicare claims and Clinical Data to support innovation and empower consumers with information. Medicare and medicaid are two of the Largest Health insurance plans in the world. Together, they cover one in three americans. So one of the things we are going to do is leverage the grant and rule making opportunities to improve the quality of care that beneficiaries receive while spending those dollars more wisely. We understand thats our role and its our responsibility to lead, and we will. But what we wont do and cant do is go it alone. Patients, physicians government, business, we all have a stake, and i believe that this shared purpose calls out for deeper partnerships. Some of our most written important results driven partners are state governments. Which are taking steps to improve the spending of medicaid dollars. We have an opportunity to improve things like modernizing medicaid systems. Core knighting and improving the care delivered to beneficiaries and managed care. Part of building a Health Care System that for millions of americans who rely on prescription painkillers known as opioids these drugs can be the super bowl prints the differences between chronic pain and welcome relief. These drugs can be deadly. In 2012 alone, opioid prescriptions were written. Thats enough for every american adult to have a bottle. Rural america, including my home state of west virginia, knows the tragedy of this issue all too well. Moving forward, we hope to work with members of congress from both parties on the goals we share for driving down opioid dependency and overdose deaths. This is a critical and complex Public Health challenge and requires a multifaceted approach. We have an opportunity to Work Together on improving opioid prescribing practices by enhancing prescription monitoring, data sharing, and clinical decisionmaking. We also want to incentivize the development of youth deterrent opioids and expand the utilization of a drug used to reverse overdoses. Theres more we can do together in the realm of medicationassisted treatment to help those who are addicted break that cycle. Last session, Congress Introduced more than a dozen pieces of Bipartisan Legislation to try and address this problem, many proposing ideas that would help fuel progress in some or even all three of these areas, and we think we should continue to Work Together. I want to turn for a moment to Global Health security. The tragic Ebola Outbreak is a solemn reminder of our common humanitarian and security interests. The most effective way to protect americans here at home from outbreaks and other Public Health threats abroad is to stop diseases and the threats of them at their source. Microbes and diseases are moving faster and further than ever before in human history, and they do not recognize national borders. I want to take this opportunity to thank the congress for choosing to act and invest in this critically important Common Ground priority of Global Health security. Recently, in a bipartisan fashion, members of both parties made a 597 Million Investment with the c. D. C. To advance the Global Health security agenda and its three pillars of prevention, detection, and response. We want to work with our Global Partners to enhance their Prevention Strategies and tools for both naturally occurring and manmade threats. With only about 30 of countries reporting that they actually adequately can detect, respond or prevent the Health Threats proposed by emerging diseases, there is an urgent need for this sort of investment and commitment. And its important to note that just as congress has stepped up to the plate, so have governments from other countries who are choosing to invest as well because they recognize that all of us have a stake in stopping outbreaks before they become pandemics. In september, president obama convened the 44 countries that have signed on to be a part of that agenda, covering 4. 8 billion people across the world. These countries have the will and the desire to implement the Global Health security agenda, but many of them require assistance to achieve the full range of its goals. This is an important start from both a National Security standpoint and a humanitarian one. Our goal must continue to be for every nation on earth to have the ability to prevent, detect and respond to Infectious Disease threats. Our ebola efforts overseas and our preparedness efforts here at home have also shown us where we can improve our abilities to add capacity and flexibility and wisely deploy resources in times of Public Health emergencies. We hope to work with the congress w