What do you call conflict of interest when it's the government writing the check? Healthcare reform legislation.
The Senate’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would establish a new, independent, nonprofit, "Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute" to contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and others to produce comparative effectiveness research (CER).
One section of the Senate bill imposes harsh penalties for the publication of certain types of research. While the bill allows for the publication of research conducted under contract to the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute in a peer-reviewed journal or other publications, the draft legislation also allow this new Institute, at its own discretion, to withhold funding from any institution whose researchers publish results that are not "within the bounds of and entirely consistent with the evidence."
"(iv) REQUIREMENTS FOR PUBLICATION OF RESEARCH- Any research published under clause (ii)(IV) shall be within the bounds of and entirely consistent with the evidence and findings produced under the contract with the Institute under this subparagraph. If the Institute determines that those requirements are not met, the Institute shall not enter into another contract with the agency, instrumentality, or entity which managed or conducted such research for a period determined appropriate by the Institute (but not less than 5 years)."
Such language to restrict scientific freedom is unprecedented and likely unconstitutional.
Should we really be legislating science via threat of purse strings?
The Senate’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would establish a new, independent, nonprofit, "Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute" to contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and others to produce comparative effectiveness research (CER).
One section of the Senate bill imposes harsh penalties for the publication of certain types of research. While the bill allows for the publication of research conducted under contract to the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute in a peer-reviewed journal or other publications, the draft legislation also allow this new Institute, at its own discretion, to withhold funding from any institution whose researchers publish results that are not "within the bounds of and entirely consistent with the evidence."
"(iv) REQUIREMENTS FOR PUBLICATION OF RESEARCH- Any research published under clause (ii)(IV) shall be within the bounds of and entirely consistent with the evidence and findings produced under the contract with the Institute under this subparagraph. If the Institute determines that those requirements are not met, the Institute shall not enter into another contract with the agency, instrumentality, or entity which managed or conducted such research for a period determined appropriate by the Institute (but not less than 5 years)."
Such language to restrict scientific freedom is unprecedented and likely unconstitutional.
Should we really be legislating science via threat of purse strings?
