Clinical Preventive Services for Women: Closing the Gaps

摘要

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) holds much promisebeyond the expansion of health care coveragefor millions of Americans. The preventive health care services and screenings specified in the legislation will be fully covered without requiring a patient copayment. These include the services with Grade A and B recommendations made by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), the Bright Futures recommendations for adolescents from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and vaccinations specified by the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDCs) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). These three sets of guidelines provide a list of preventive services, such as blood pressure measurement, diabetes and cholesterol tests, and mammography and colonoscopy screenings. As part of the ACA, the list of preventive services specific to womens health was requested to be reviewed.