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To the Editor: Drs Perry and Thamer¹ discuss the important role of evidence-based medicine principles in medical decision making. Similarly, it is imperative that new devices and procedures be critically evaluated before they are made available to the public, and that older technologies be reevaluated to ensure that they continue to provide benefit. Medical technologies continue to evolve, and this review must not be a one-time exercise.² As a major purchaser of medical services, the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) is keenly interested in such technology assessment.

Within recent months, HCFA has redesigned the manner in which it makes coverage decisions for the Medicare program.³ The process has become more open, inclusive, timely, and predictable. A major component of this process is evidence-based medicine. We plan to use technology assessment to help guide our decisions. Such assessment is of great value in ascertaining the "truth" in a process where all . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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RELATED ARTICLE

Medical Innovation and the Critical Role of Health Technology Assessment
Seymour Perry and Mae Thamer
JAMA. 1999;282(19):1869-1872.
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