Managed outcomes: a strategy to improve the nation's health

Current health care delivery systems in the United States have led to high cost, uneven quality, less than universal coverage, undue emphasis on a medical/clinical model, and scant attention to primary care and prevention. In the context of health care reform, a new strategy is introduced that reverses present trends and incentives, called managed outcomes. This strategy is not specific to any particular health care delivery system. Managed outcomes encourages experimentation and flexibility in the design of health care systems and fosters primary care, health promotion, and disease prevention models. It links purchasing decisions to established specific and measurable goals that can provide quality and cost-effective services to improve health.