HHS named the members of its new Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research, established to oversee and manage $1.1 billion in research funds allocated through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
The council was formed to make recommendations to the HHS secretary about different treatment options including medications and surgical procedures and aims to present the “best information” possible to doctors and patients as they make healthcare choices, said Carolyn Clancy, a physician who is director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. That information is “too often lacking,” she said during a teleconference. Clancy was one of the members named to the new council.
AHRQ will use $300 million of the allocated funds to extend its comparative-effectiveness research programs. The National Institutes of Health and HHS each receive $400 million in funding for research through the stimulus law. The federal council is required by the law to submit an operations plan by July 30 that outlines its priorities for the research spending.
In addition to Clancy, the other 14 members of the council are:
Rear Adm. Peter Delany, director of the office of applied studies at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Ezekiel Emanuel, a physician who is special adviser on healthcare with the Office of Management and Budget.
Jesse Goodman, a physician who is acting chief medical officer at the Food and Drug Administration.
Garth Graham, a physician who is deputy assistant secretary for minority health in the Office of Minority Health.
Anne Haddix, chief policy officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Deborah Parham Hopson, associate administrator of the HIV/AIDS Bureau at the Health Resources and Services Administration.
David Hunt, a physician who is chief medical officer in the Office of the National Coordinator.
Michael Kilpatrick, a physician who is director of strategic communications for the Military Health System.
Joel Kupersmith, a physician who is chief research and development officer of the Veterans Health Administration.
Michael Marge, acting director of the Office on Disability.
Elizabeth Nabel, a physician who is director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute within the NIH.
Jim Scanlon, acting deputy assistant secretary for planning and evaluation at the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
Neera Tanden, counselor for health reform at HHS.
Tom Valuck, a physician who is medical officer and a senior adviser at the CMS.
What do you think? Post a comment on this article and share your opinion with other readers. Submit your comments to
Modern Healthcare Online at
mheditorial@modernhealthcare.com. Please be sure to include your hometown and state, along with your organization and title.
