Society for Medical Decision Making

 July 18, 2012

Dear Members of the House Labor, HHS Sub-Committee, 

On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Society for Medical Decision Making, we are writing to convey our strongest opposition to the fiscal year (FY) 2013 spending bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and related agencies. This bill is a devastating attack on health services research funding.

Among the many cuts to public health programs and policy riders, the bill “terminates” the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (Sec. 223), zeroing out its budget entirely. AHRQ funds important research and programs at local universities, hospitals, and health departments that improve health care quality, enhance consumer choice, advance patient safety, improve efficiency, reduce medical errors, and broaden access to essential services. In addition, the bill also prohibits funding for patient-centered outcomes research (Sec. 217).

This bill would cause irreparable damage to health services research. We believe that the Agency for Health Care Research, Quality and Patient Centered Outcomes Research must be protected.

The Society for Medical Decision Making is a group of approximately 1,000 researchers, clinicians, educators, managers, and policy makers in health care. We are dedicated to improving health outcomes through the advancement of proactive systematic approaches to clinical decision making and policy-formation in health care by providing a scholarly forum that connects and educates researchers, providers, policy-makers, and the public.

Scott Braithwaite, MD              Marilyn Schapira, MD, MPH
President-Elect                          Past President