Vital Directions For Health And Health Care: Priorities For 2021

In 2016, in anticipation of the US presidential election and forthcoming new administration, the National Academy of Medicine launched a strategic initiative to marshal expert guidance on pressing health and health care priorities. Published as Vital Directions for Health and Health Care, the products of the initiative provide trusted, nonpartisan, evidence-based analysis of critical issues in health, health care, and biomedical science. The current collection of articles published in Health Affairs builds on the initial Vital Directions series by addressing a set of issues that have a particularly compelling need for attention from the next administration: health costs and financing, early childhood and maternal health, mental health and addiction, better health and health care for older adults, and infectious disease threats. The articles also reflect the current experience with both the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the health inequities that have been drawn out sharply by COVID-19, as well as the implications going forward for action.

Automated summary

The National Academy of Medicine initiated a strategic initiative in 2016 to provide expert guidance on pressing health and health care priorities for the forthcoming new administration. The articles published address issues such as health costs, early childhood and maternal health, mental health and addiction, better health for older adults, and infectious disease threats, reflecting the current experience with the COVID-19 pandemic and health inequities.