IOM Meeting Seeks Input on Comparative Effectiveness Research
Key stakeholders in public health, health care, and research on both topics will be represented today at a public meeting in Washington, D.C., organized to assist the Institute of Medicine so it can advise Congress and HHS about how to spend $400 million in already appropriated funds for comparative effectiveness research. CER may seem undefined, but the 20-page questionnaire being used to solicit public input by the IOM Committee on Comparative Effectiveness Research Priorities asks about methods to prevent, diagnose, treat, monitor, and improve delivery of care for clinical conditions in numerous areas, including infectious diseases, musculoskeletal disorders, respiratory diseases, trauma and emergency medicine, medical aspects of bioterrorism, alcoholism and drug dependency, and safety and quality of health care.
The $400 million is allocated in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the full title for the federal stimulus bill. It requires IOM to produce and submit a consensus report with recommendations by June 30, 2009, and to seek and consider public input as it develops them. The questionnaire is a primary vehicle for getting input from all stakeholders in health care (e.g., patients, consumers, providers, federal agencies, employers, manufacturers, and policy makers, according to IOM). The questionnaire will be active until March 27, with responses then collected in a database that will be reviewed by the committee.
The public meeting is accessible by phone and online. Taking place from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Eastern, it will include representatives from 72 organizations, including the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, CDC, CIGNA, the American Heart Association, FDA, AHRQ, the California Department of Public Health, the Association of Schools of Public Health, the American Medical Association, Consumers Union, and the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association.
To participate in the meeting by phone, dial 1-866-244-4576. To participate via the Web, click here. To submit comments, click here.