At the Heart of Health Care Reform: Leadership Lessons from President Obama

Health care encompasses a broad. complicated web of political. economic and cultural ideology. values and systems, which have haunted every U.S. president serving over the last century. While many presidents have tried, few have succeeded in making such sweeping change as President Barack Obama when, on March 23, 2010, historic reform was enacted, with the passing of the Patient Protection and Affodable Care Act. A history of broad reform efforts under each president\u27s leadership is reviewed. followed by an exploration into definitions and requirements of presidential leadership. Lessons for reform as developed by Blumenthal and Morone (2009) are outlined and President Obama\u27s efforts since taking office are applied within this framework. Evaluating President Obama within this lens offers an opportunity to explore this new framework, to show connections between presidential leadership and his role in reform efforts, and provides lessons for any leader striving to create change