Identifying and Eliminating the Roadblocks to Comparative-Effectiveness Research

Patient-advocacy and health policy groups have hailed comparative-effectiveness research (CER) as a means of reducing health care costs without compromising the quality of care. The federal commitment of $1.1 billion under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) ensures that the scientific community will undertake considerable amounts of such research. Yet major federal policy changes and innovative measures were required before one CER study, “Comparison of Age-Related Macular Degeneration [AMD] Treatments Trials (CATT),” could even be launched. Our experience with CATT highlights important roadblocks and dramatic changes needed in federal infrastructure for CER to be conducted efficiently.In July 2005, . . .