The Tennessee State Forums Partnership is a component of the State Forums Partnership program supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  It was formed in April 2003 to enhance public policy making in health and healthcare by providing a comprehensive, current, and unbiased information to policy and decision makers.

The partnership seeks to achieve this goal by convening Forums focusing on critical health care issues.  These forums are designed to present background information and to provide a setting for the discussions of policy options related to the chosen topic.  They are intended to be unbiased and nonpartisan by resenting many points of view without making specific recommendations of promoting a particular position.  They are intended to promote an open dialogue among stakeholders by being held in a "safe harbor" environment.

Each Forum will be preceded by an Issue Brief that discusses the background and context of the policy question to be discussed.

The topics for the Forums will be selected by an Advisory Group.  This Group is composed of public policy and healthcare leaders from across the state and region.

The Tennessee State Forums Partnership is supported by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to the Center for Health Services Research of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.  Additional support comes from the LHS Foundation, Shelby County Government, the Memphis Medical Society, and the University of Tennessee.