Envisioning a Better U.S. Health Care System for All: Health Care Delivery and Payment System Reforms.

The American College of Physicians (ACP) has long advocated for universal access to high-quality health care in the United States. Yet, it is essential that the U.S. health system goes beyond ensuring coverage, efficient delivery systems, and affordability. Fundamental restructuring of payment policies and delivery systems is required to achieve a health care system that puts patients' interests first and supports physicians and their care teams to deliver high-value, patient- and family-centered care. The ACP calls for reform of U.S. payment, delivery, and information technology systems to achieve this vision. The ACP's recommendations include increased investment in primary care; alignment of financial incentives to achieve better patient outcomes, lower costs, reduce inequities in health care, and facilitate team-based care; freeing patients and physicians of inefficient administrative and billing tasks and documentation requirements; and development of health information technologies that enhance the patient-physician relationship.

Women's Health Policy in the United States: An American College of Physicians Position Paper.

In this position paper, the American College of Physicians (ACP) examines the challenges women face in the U.S. health care system across their lifespans, including access to care; sex- and gender-specific health issues; variation in health outcomes compared with men; underrepresentation in research studies; and public policies that affect women, their families, and society. ACP puts forward several recommendations focused on policies that will improve the health outcomes of women and ensure a health care system that supports the needs of women and their families over the course of their lifespans.

Putting Patients First by Reducing Administrative Tasks in Health Care: A Position Paper of the American College of Physicians.

This American College of Physicians (ACP) position paper, initiated and written by ACP's Medical Practice and Quality Committee and approved by the Board of Regents on 21 January 2017, reports policy recommendations to address the issue of administrative tasks to mitigate or eliminate their adverse effects on physicians, their patients, and the health care system as a whole. The paper outlines a cohesive framework for analyzing administrative tasks through several lenses to better understand any given task that a clinician and his or her staff may be required to perform. In addition, a scoping literature review and environmental scan were done to assess the effects on physician time, practice and system cost, and patient care due to the increase in administrative tasks. The findings from the scoping review, in addition to the framework, provide the backbone of detailed policy recommendations from the ACP to external stakeholders (such as payers, governmental oversight organizations, and vendors) regarding how any given administrative requirement, regulation, or program should be assessed, then potentially revised or removed entirely.