Guest post by Mara McDermott, Vice President at McDermott+Consulting.

With the 2020 election almost in the rearview mirror, clinicians and policymakers alike are turning their attention to the 2021 agenda. For primary care providers, 2021 will hopefully bring COVID-19 recovery and response efforts, additional opportunities to pursue value-based payment arrangements, and ongoing deployment of telehealth and virtual technology.

The 2020 presidential election is expected to bring about a change in administration. However, the “blue wave” Democratic sweep projected by some pundits and pollsters failed to materialize. Instead, in Washington, DC, we will have a closely divided US Senate, with the final balance of power to be determined by two run-off races in Georgia. The US House of Representatives will remain in Democratic control, but by a smaller margin. The narrow margins in the House and Senate will likely constrain the extent to which Democrats are able to advance progressive policy changes. Instead, both sides of the political aisle in Congress are likely to focus on bipartisan areas of agreement. For primary care clinicians, this environment may be encouraging, as members of both parties share goals around protecting and advancing primary care across the country.

COVID-19 Response

When the new Congress begins and President-Elect Biden is inaugurated in January 2021, COVID-19 relief is expected to be at the top of the agenda. Expect President-elect Biden and the incoming Congress to pursue economic and public health relief. Clinicians across the country who have faced depressed revenue as [...]

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