PCORI names Luce chief science officer

Bryan Luce has been named the first chief science officer of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, a Washington-based independent not-for-profit established by the healthcare reform law to fund and promote comparative-effectiveness research.

Luce previously served as senior VP for science and policy for United BioSource Corp., Chevy Chase, Md., which partners with life sciences companies on product development, comparative-effectiveness research and commercialization.

A longtime veteran of outcomes research, he also was the founder and CEO of Medtap International, a Bethesda, Md.-based firm that provided outcomes research services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Founded in 1983, Medtap International was acquired by United BioSource in 2004.

In 2008, Luce founded the Pragmatic Approaches to Comparative Effectiveness Research, or PACE, Initiative, a collaborative project affiliated with United BioSource Corp. aimed at fostering affordable, “real-world” outcomes research.

“PCORI has the potential to transform the way health care is delivered,” Luce said of his new post. “I look forward to leading our scientific staff as we work with patients, caregivers, researchers, clinicians, and other stakeholders to build a foundation of evidence that will improve healthcare decision-making.”

Luce is an adjunct faculty member at several institutions, including Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia; and the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

His age was unavailable at deadline.

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