Aetna: Economic Stimulus Package Makes Needed Investments In Health Care

HARTFORD, Conn. — Aetna (NYSE: AET) Chairman and CEO Ronald A. Williams issued the following statement on the signing of the Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009:

"We believe the economic stimulus package signed into law today makes needed investments in helping states preserve and enhance their health care safety nets in these difficult times. Moreover, the new law also provides a much-needed subsidy for newly unemployed families to be able to maintain their health care coverage.

"This legislation also makes an important down payment on improving health care in America. By focusing on subsidies to encourage the adoption of health information technology by physicians, hospitals and other providers, this legislation pushes us toward the day when we have a truly connected health care system -- one providing physicians and patients with actionable information that allows them to improve the quality of care being delivered or accessed.

"Significantly, this legislation also provides for improvements in wellness, prevention and comparative effectiveness analysis -- these are areas of our health care system that hold the biggest promise for improving quality and directly addressing the pace of growth of health care costs in America.

“Aetna continues to be a strong supporter of workable solutions to the health care challenges facing our country. We were strong advocates for SCHIP extensions as a critical way to address the challenges of providing health care coverage for America’s children. We also were early supporters of the landmark mental-health parity legislation that was signed into law last year. We look forward to working collaboratively with the White House, Congress and other stakeholders to transform health care in America.”