Comparative Effectiveness Research and Patients with Multiple Chronic Conditions

The aim of comparative effectiveness research (CER) is to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of health care and to help patients, health care professionals, and purchasers make informed decisions. CER is moving forward, with recently defined priorities and a newly funded Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, which we hope will survive congressional cost cutting. To achieve its goals, CER must address the population that consumes the most health care: patients with multiple chronic conditions, especially those with combinations of behavioral and physical conditions such as dementia, mental illness, end-stage renal disease, and heart failure. Such patients account for more than . . .