According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the overall quality of the U.S. health care system continues to improve, but the pace of improvement may be slowing. This is based on the latest annual reports on health care quality and disparities released by the Agency. Overall quality improved by an average 2.3% between 1994 and 2005, based on more than 200 quality measures tracked by the report. The agency reported notable gains in improvements in care of heart disease patients, as well as some reductions in racial and ethnic disparities in care.

For more information about the reports, go to http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/qrdr07.htm.