On Tuesday, December 16, 2008 NECON, the New England Governors' Conference, Inc. and Region I, US Department of Health & Human Services will convene our annual region-wide forum of policymakers and legislators at the Royal Plaza Hotel & Trade Center in Marlborough, MA. As you may know, the New England Governors' Conference has charged NECON to interact with health policymakers throughout New England and to submit recommendations periodically for the improvement of the health status of the region. We invite you to attend and be an active participant in this process.

This year's conference is entitled Prevention: The Ultimate Cost Containment Strategy and a Key to Affordable Universal Healthcare in America. Dr. Ken Thorpe, Chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, has done considerable research and writing on this issue and will keynote the event.

The conference will be a convergence of universal access and wellness advocates as well as early intervention proponents. There is a rationale for this alliance. The uninsured and underinsured are most likely to be hospitalized with intensive health problems that could have been prevented if treated earlier by primary care. And, there is increased scientific evidence that prevention not only enhances quality of life but is also our best cost containment strategy. Many constituencies bring shared values to this cause.

At the conference we will also launch the NECON Prevention Project. The focus of this project is—via live and web-based developmental forums—to establish a strong, sustained health promotion and disease prevention presence in the 2009-10 health care transformation dialogue.