The federal government has finally jumped on the IRO bandwagon with the approved $787 billion economic stimulus bill that provides substantial amounts of money for the federeal government to compare the effectiveness of different treatments for the same illness.

According to a recent New York Times article, "under the legislation, researchers will receive $1.1 billion to compare drugs, medical devices, surgery and other ways of treating specific conditions." These comparisons will likely become the touchstone for independent review organizations, payers and hospitals alike to use to establish standards of care that are based off of empirical evidence. The article states that the program is a response to a "growing concern that doctors have little or solid evidence of the value of many treatments."

Researchers also hope that the program will eventually save money by discouraging the use of costly, ineffective treatments; a vital improvement for the soaring cost of health care nationwide.

The Health and Human Services Department will have immediate access to the money, which can be spent over several years. The article reported that "some money will be used for systematic reviews of published scientific studies, and some will be used for clinical trials making head-to-head comparisons of different treatments."

In essence, the health care problem could very well be on the mend for hospitals, doctors, payers and consumers alike.

To read about political reactions, click here to view the full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/16/health/policy/16health.html?ref=health