Table 2

Framework for conducting comparative effectiveness reviews: transparency

ACA'S patient centered outcomes researchARRA'S comparative effectiveness researchMMA'S effective health care program

  • PCORI Board of Governors Meetings

    • – meets in public at call of the Chair or a majority of members

    • – public notice requirement for meetings (at least 7 days advance notice)

  • Federal Coordinating Council and IOM Committee Meetings

    • – working meetings were not open to the public

    • – meeting summaries were included in the report of the Council

    • – stakeholder input was solicited by both the Council and the IOM panel

  • Stakeholder group meetings

    • – meets in private at call of AHRQ

  • Public availability of information via internet website

    • – required by statute, includes the following:

  • Research finding

    • – must be made available to clinicians, patients, and the general public within 90 days of the conduct or receipt of findings

  • Federal Coordinating Council

    • – posted final report on HHS web site

  • IOM Committee

    • – posted stakeholder open meeting presentations and final report on the IOM website

  • ARRA contract solicitations and funding awards

    • – posted on AHRQ and NIH websites

  • Public availability of information via internet website

    • – no statutory requirement

  • Research findings

    • – AHRQ EHC practice is to post research reports, and to notify interested parties of developments through listservs

  • Process and methods for conduct of research

    • – identity of the research entity and the investigators conducting the research

    • – conflicts of interest

    • – direct or indirect links to industry

    • – research protocols

    • – other information the Institute determines appropriate

  • Process and methods for conduct of research

    • – MMA Sec. 1013(a)(3)(D)(i) requires “all scientific evidence relied upon and the methodologies employed” to be made publicly available “so that the results…can be evaluated or replicated”

    • – AHRQ EHC practice is not to post the identity of the research entity and the investigators conducting the research

  • Notice of public comment periods

    • – includes posting deadlines for public comments

    • Comments received during public comment periods

  • Institute proceedings

  • Notice of public comment periods

    • – AHRQ EHC practice is to post information on the review process and notify interested parties of opportunity to comment via listservs

  • Comments received during public comment

    • – AHRQ EHC practice is to solicit public suggestions for research proposals, post suggestions and to post comments (and report authors' responses to comments) within 3 months after a final report is posted

  • Stakeholder group proceedings

    • – AHRQ EHC practice is not to post meeting agendas, minutes or proceedings of these meetings

  • Peer reviewers

    • – a list of those contributing to any peer review process shall be made public and included in annual reports

    • – PCORI may utilize the peer review processes of contractors or other entities, as well as medical journals

  • Peer reviewers

    • – peer reviewers for systematic reviews are noted in the appendix of final reports and posted on the website—published reports, including DEcIDE network reports, have been subject to peer review processes of the applicable journal

  • Adapted and modified from: Partnership to improve patient care. A procedural framework for the conduct of comparative clinical effectiveness research. November 2010. http://www.improvepatientcare.org/sites/default/files/CER_Procedure-PIPC_Whitepaper.pdf

  • ACA, Affordable Care Act; AHRQ, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; ARRA, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act; EHC, ; HHS, Department for Health and Human Services; IOM, Institute of Medicine; MMA, Medicare Modernization Act; NIH, National Institutes of Health; PCORI, Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute; EHC, Effective Health Care.