On November 19, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the “Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Reauthorization Act.” Please find the press release here and the bill here. We are extremely pleased to see this important bipartisan marker of Senate support for PCORI. The Friends of PCORI Reauthorization co-chairs, former Representatives Tony Coelho (D-CA) and Phil Gingrey (R-GA), sent a letter to the four bill sponsors in support of the 10-year reauthorization period, maintenance of the current funding mechanisms, and continuation of the mandate to conduct comparative clinical effectiveness research.
Specifically, the bill:
- Extends PCORI’s authorization for another 10 years – through FY2029
- Reauthorizes all three funding sources of the PCOR Trust Fund
- Adds 4 slots , for a total of 7, to the PCORI Board for private payers
- Requires collection of clinical and patient-centered outcomes data related to burden and economic impact
- Establishes an Expert Advisory Panel for High-Impact Research – i.e. high-impact on national health expenditures
- Revises the definition of approved clinical trial in the individual and group market to include PCORI and allows for Medicare coverage of items and services in PCORI-funded clinical trails
- Requires PCORI to include narrative statements of its funding announcements in the annual report
- Requires GAO to report on barriers that PCORI-funded researches encounter in conducting studies or clinical trails
- Underscores the importance of uptake of research findings in AHRQ and PCORI’s dissemination mandate
- Exempts AHRQ’s PCORI-related activities from the Paper Work Reduction Act requirements
- Amends PCORI’s directive to balance long-term and short-term priorities
