The Hill News

PCORI is in Washington this week. PCORI is the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, an organization created under the Affordable Care Act to conduct comparative clinical effectiveness research.

PCORI has not received a lot of attention over the past year -- which is probably a good thing after all the controversy over rationing during the health reform debate -- but ultimately its work could be very important to improving our health system over the long run by supporting patients and patient-centered health care.

The controversy of comparative effectiveness research and rationing is understandable. There have been too many examples where policymakers have used CER as a rigid standard that restricts patient access care, or as the basis for provider incentives that impose a one-size-fits-all approach that impedes the doctor's ability to tailor care to the needs of the individual patient.

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