Hundreds of alumni stopped by the Mayflower Renaissance April 3 for “An Evening with President Steven Knapp,” which featured a reception and a panel discussion on health care with George Washington deans, professors and alumni.
Moderated by GW Trustee Ellen Zane, B.A. ’73, the panel discussion on the state of health care in the United States included Jeffrey Flaks, M.H.S.A. ’96, president and CEO of Hartford Hospital in Connecticut; Jean Johnson, dean of the School of Nursing; and Sara Rosenbaum, Harold and Jane Hirsh Professor of Health Law and Policy.
“We’re at a major crossroads in public health as well as medical care as a result of the enactment, and now the implementation, of the Affordable Care Act,” said SPHHS Dean Lynn R. Goldman, who introduced the panel. The act is positive for the health of the nation, the dean said, but its implementation does face some barriers. “So the stakes are very high.”
Ms. Rosenbaum said the act attempts to create a “new normal” where people can depend on health care, and she, Dr. Johnson and Mr. Flaks were confident the act would increase the quality of care the nation receives.
A key concept of the law is creating “exchanges,” or health insurance marketplaces, said Ms. Rosenbaum. Those who are uninsured would seek insurance in a “virtual shopping center” much like they would to book travel on Expedia, she said. It might not be easy at first, but eventually it will become second nature, she added.
“It will make all the difference in the world to many people.”
Alumni also had the opportunity to ask panelists questions, such as why it’s so difficult to find out the price of a procedure before a patient gets the bill.
Ms. Rosenbaum said medicine is famous for “cloaking and shielding,” and one of the greatest challenges is the “opacity of health information.” Getting that information will take more transparency and knowledge on the part of health care providers when it comes to how much procedures cost, she said.
Throughout the discussion, panelists also touched on learning from other nations that have universal health care, examining the scope of practice for various health care professionals, the importance of accountability, successfully navigating the health care system as a patient and the fact that they see health care as a fundamental right.
Before the panel, Dr. Knapp started the evening by updating alumni on the university’s progress and causes for excitement on campus during the current academic year.
“We really are on track to achieve our aspiration to be simply the most powerful and respected of any university in this region, and certainly in the heart of the nation’s capital,” Dr. Knapp said.
New partnerships, like the university becoming the sole education partner for the 2013 Fortune Global Forum in Chengdu, China, are also exciting as the university moves toward its third century.
“Everything we’re doing is funneling our energy to that moment in 2021, which will be the bicentennial and the occasion on which we launch the third century of this great university,” Dr. Knapp said.
President of the Alumni Association Jim Core, M.A. ’96, who also gave opening remarks, thanked attendees for coming and said the Alumni Association “is a community of volunteers, and we’re committed to creating really great outcomes for our GW community—our students, our alumni and, indeed, the university itself.”