DURHAM, N.H. - The New Hampshire Citizens Health Initiative, part of the Institute for Health Policy and Practice at the University of New Hampshire, will host a symposium for health care providers, purchasers and stakeholders from New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine at UNH on May 21, 2013. The symposium, "Advancing Change: Healthcare System Transformation in Northern New England," will focus on what is being done in the three states to control health care costs and improve health care quality and efficiency.

What:             Advancing Change: Healthcare System Transformation in Northern New England

When:            Tuesday, May 21, 2013, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Where:           Squamscott Room, Holloway Commons on the UNH campus in Durham

More:              Keynote speaker (8:45 a.m.) will be Jay Want, M.D., chief medical officer of the Center for Improving Value in Health Care in Colorado. Dr. Want is an innovation advisor for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services and recognized for leadership in health policy by the Colorado Health Foundation. He has spoken nationally at the Brandeis Health Industry Forum, the Integrated Healthcare Association, and AcademyHealth.

Governor Maggie Hassan will deliver closing remarks at 3:45 p.m.

The Symposium will also include presentations and panel discussions highlighting health transformation initiatives across northern New England including using data to drive health system change, regional tools for learning and collaboration, and funders' perspectives on supporting health system transformation efforts. For a complete schedule, go to http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=sx7tuacab&oeidk=a07e6zbd00w34ba2ac4.

Sponsors of the event include Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Hampshire, CIGNA, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, and funders Jessie B. Cox Trust, Endowment for Health, Maine Health Access Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students.

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