On October 22, 2007 CMS will convene a public meeting of the Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee (MedCAC) entitled Evidentiary Priorities for the Medicare Program. Numerous issues affect the health and healthcare of our Medicare beneficiaries.  Certain disease processes account for a large percentage of services provided to our beneficiaries.  Specific treatments and healthcare delivery processes have a great impact on beneficiaries’ outcomes. 

The purpose of this MedCAC is to assist CMS in developing priorities for evidence development for issues of major importance to the Medicare program and the Medicare population. These issues will provide a framework for the scientific community interested in developing evidence that will impact the health of Medicare beneficiaries.

We have assembled a MedCAC panel qualified to discuss research priorities with the most potential to the Medicare population.  High profile experts from the scientific community will serve on this panel. Experts from the NIH institutes will present the most relevant research topics. The CDC, AHRQ, and Medicare representatives will describe data resources available in their respective agencies.  .

The end product of the MedCAC is a priority list of research topics with the most potential impact on Medicare and Medicare beneficiaries to contribute to the body of medical evidence specific to the Medicare populations.

Presentations and Written Comment:

We are soliciting comments from the scientific community on prioritizing these issues for the Medicare population.  Presentations and written comments must be received by September 17, 2007 5:00pm, est.  Presentations once submitted are final.  We recommend presentations to be in Power Point. 

Please email your presentations to MedCACpresentations@cms.hhs.gov

Registration:

The Coverage and Analysis Group is coordinating meeting registration.  While there is no registration fee, individuals must register to attend.  Register by contacting Maria Ellis maria.ellis@cms.hhs.gov by phone or e-mail.  Please provide your full name (as it appears on your state issued driver’s license), address, organization, telephone, fax number(s), and e-mail address.

You will receive a registration confirmation with instructions for your arrival at the CMS complex.  You will be notified if the seating capacity has been reached.

This meeting is located on Federal property; therefore, for security reasons, any individuals wishing to attend this meeting must register by close of business on October 15, 2007.

Security:

This meeting will be held in a Federal government building; therefore, Federal security measures are applicable.  In planning your arrival time, we recommend that you arrive reasonably early to allow additional time to clear security.

In order to gain access to the building and grounds, individuals must present government issued photographic identification to the Federal Protective Service or Guard Service personnel before being allowed entrance.

Security measures also include a full inspection of vehicles, inside and exterior areas (rear trunk and engine) at the entrance to the grounds.  In addition, all individuals entering the building must pass through a metal detector.  All items brought to CMS, whether personal or for the purpose of or support of a demonstration, are subject to inspection.  We cannot assume responsibility for coordinating the receipt, transfer, transport, storage, set-up, safety, or timely arrival of any personal belongings or items used for demonstration or to support a demonstration. 

Parking permits and instructions will be issued upon arrival.

Note:  Individuals who are not registered in advance will not be permitted to enter the building and will be unable to attend the meeting.  The public may not enter the building earlier than 30 to 45 minutes prior to the convening of the meeting.

All visitors must be escorted in areas except for the lower and first floor levels in the Central Building.

CMS Evidentiary Priorities in Medicare

Questions

1. Which diseases represent the greatest burden to Medicare beneficiaries?

2. Which diseases and their treatments are the costliest to the Medicare Program?

3. Where are our greatest deficits in knowledge about the most important diseases and their treatments in the Medicare population as discussed in Questions 1 and 2?

4. How do we approach the problem of increasing the evidence base for the most important diseases and their treatments in the Medicare population as discussed in Questions 1 and 2?

5. Please provide a priority list of diseases and their treatments that are most critical to increasing the evidence base for making coverage decisions that affect the Medicare population based on your discussions of the above questions.

• Steven Glassman, MD, Orthopedic Surgeon, Spine Institute, Professional Society Coalition Task Force on Lumbar Spine Fusion, and Daniel K. Resnick, MD, University of Wisconsin Medical School 

• William Weintraub, MD, American Heart Association (AHA)

• Randy Burkholder, Associate Vice President, Policy, PhRMA

• Ann-Marie Lynch, AdvaMed