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Topic 2007: Healthcare and Innovation
Innovation and change are at the core not only of medical treatment and technology but also of any good healthcare system. In the United States, an unprecedented number of initiatives are being developed at the state and federal levels to improve healthcare. How to expand and secure healthcare coverage for all Americans will be a crucial topic in the runup to the 2008 presidential election. Meanwhile, capping several years of small step reforms, Germany’s parliament passed a major overhaul of the German healthcare system that became effective on April 1, 2007.
To discuss innovation in healthcare policy, CGES recruited an impressive array of top-level speakers. They shared the most up-to-date information and outlined opportunities and challenges. Key issues included:
- How do we define innovation? What are the challenges?
- What are the abilities of the USA and the German systems to integrate innovation?
- Incentives and disincentives for innovation in the USA and Europe
- How do innovative medicines and procedures reach patients?
- What are the economic issues and how do we best solve them?
- What are the regulations on benefit innovations in the US Medicare/Medicaid system and with private providers vs. regulations in Germany ?
- Payment policies
- Perspectives for the future: where should we go and why?
Day 1 of the conference addressed broad policy issues; Day 2 focused on the mechanisms that regulate coverage, quality, and costs.
Trans-Atlantic Experts’ Roundtable 2007 Program
Day 1
American & German Healthcare 2007: Healthcare Systems and Innovation—Policy Perspectives in the United States and Germany
University of Minnesota
Monday, July 16, 2007
| 8:00 | Registration and coffee |
| 8:30 | Welcome—Dr. Sabine Engel, director, Center for German & European Studies |
| 8:35 | Opening Remarks—Prof. Robert H. Bruininks, President, University of Minnesota |
| 8:50 | Innovative Healthcare Policy in the United States and Germany—Keynotes Ulla Schmidt, Minister of Health, Federal Republic of Germany, Berlin Hubert H. Humphrey, III, J.D., AARP Minnesota State President |
| 9:50 | Moderated Q&A with previous speakers. Moderator: Dr. Lynn Blewett, Director, Public Health Administration Program, Division of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota |
| 10:45-11:00 | coffee break |
| 11:00 | How Well Do the US and the German Systems Integrate Innovation? "Healthcare in Minnesota—Creating a Value-Driven Care System" Commissioner Cal Ludeman, State of Minnesota "Cooperative Innovation: The Key to the Future of Healthcare" Frank B. Cerra, M.D., Senior Vice President for Health Sciences, Academic Health Center, University of Minnesota "Channels of Innovation Within the World's Largest Medical Device Company" Stephen Oesterle, M.D., Senior Vice President for Medicine and Technology, Medtronic "Opportunities and Limitations for Innovations in Germany" Andreas Barner, M.D., Vice Chairman of the Board of Managing Directors, Boehringer-Ingelheim GmbH; Chairman, VFA (German Association of Research-based Pharmaceutical Companies) |
| 12:00 | Moderated Panel discussion and Q & A with mid-morning speakers. Moderator: Dr. Lynn Blewett |
| 1:30 | Reception and Buffet Lunch |
| 2:30-3:15 | "Walk for Wellness—with Germany's Minister of Health" Free public community event to encourage regular light physical activity; first 100 participants in the walk will receive a free pedometer |
| 6:00 | dinner and evening program for conference participants |
The forum was recorded by Twin Cities Public Television for subsequent broadcast on public television. If you would like to receive a copy of the DVD, email cges@umn.edu; cost: $20
Day 2
Unlocking Innovation in the United States and Germany—Coverage, Quality, Cost, and Regulation*
University of Minnesota
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
| 8:00 | Registration and coffee |
| 8:30 | Welcome—Dr. Sabine Engel, director, Center for German & European Studies |
| 8:35 | Keynote Address—Dr. Uwe Reinhardt, James Madison Professor of Political Economy, Princeton University |
| 9:05 | Discussion and Q&A. Moderator: Dr. Stephen Schondelmeyer, director, PRIME Institute, University of Minnesota |
| 9:25 | "Health Technology Assessment (HTA) in Germany: Promotion or Restriction of Innovation?" Dr. Rainer Hess, Chairman of the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), Germany |
| 9:40 | "Healthcare Innovation in the United States: The Role of Coverage and Payment Policies" Dr. Steven Sheingold, US Dept. of Health and Human Services, Washington |
| 9:55 | Discussion and Q&A. Moderator: Dr. Stephen Schondelmeyer |
| 10:30-10:45 | coffee break |
| 10:45 | The Perspectives of Insurers, Economists, and Government "Promoting Engagement: How A Nonprofit Health Insurer Is A Catalyst for Change in Minnesota" David Tilford, President and CEO, Medica "Healthcare Innovation in the US: A Theoretical Problem in Search of an Empirical Solution" Dr. John A. Nyman, Division of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota "Unlocking Innovation: Coverage, Quality, Cost, and Regulation" Ulrich Dietz, head, Reimbursement of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Health, Federal Republic of Germany, Berlin |
| 11:30 | Discussion and Q&A. Moderator: Dr. Stephen Schondelmeyer |
| 12:00 | The Perspectives of Patients, Doctors, and Pharmacists "Why Did Tiger Woods Change His Swing (and what can we learn from this for healthcare reform)?" Glenn Forbes, M.D., Chief Executive Officer, Mayo Clinic Rochester "Innovating from the Inside: Creating New Models of Care for Vulnerable Populations" Nancy Feldman, President and Chief Executive Officer, UCare Minnesota "Pharmaceutical Innovation in Germany: Head in the Clouds, Feet on the Ground?—Remarks by a Pharmacist" Heinz-Guenter Wolf, President, ABDA-German Association of Pharmacists |
| 12:30 | Discussion and Q&A. Moderator: Dr. Stephen Schondelmeyer |
| 1:00 | Concluding remarks |
| 1:15–2:45 | Lunch and Farewell |