Setting National Priorities

Examines the nature of challenges confronting federal policymakers, options available to address these challenges, and the ramifications of these options. Looks at issues such as measures to stimulate economic growth, reducing discretionary spending, restructuring Medicare, reshaping national security for the post-Cold War world, and preparing for

Setting National Priorities continues the highly acclaimed and influential series of books that examine domestic and foreign policy choices confronting the United States.

The federal policy changes that Congress and the President will have to make as we approach the 21st century will be among the most far-reaching since the enactment of the New Deal. The scope of legislation before policymakers as they continue their efforts to balance the budget will be vast and many of its elements very technical. This new, highly accessible book examines the nature of the challenges confronting policymakers, the options that are available to address these challenges, and the ramifications of the various options. This new book, which continues Brookings' highly acclaimed and influential Setting National Priorities series, will serve as a guide for understanding and evaluating proposals of the next Congress and the new administration. It is also designed to inform the policy debate during the presidential election. Edited by Robert Reischauer, one of the nation's most noted budget experts, the book covers such critical issues as prospects for economic growth, how to reduce domestic discretionary spending, how to restructure Medicare; how much to lower the safety net, how to reshape national security for the post-Cold War world, whether to transform the tax system, and how to prepare for the retirement of the baby boom generation. This book will be extremely useful for citizens anxious to make sense out of the campaign rhetoric, journalists attempting to explain the issues at play, and students of public policy, public health, political science, and economics. In addition to Reischauer, the contributors include Henry J. Aaron, Barry Bosworth, Gary Burtless, David Cutler, William G. Gale, Thomas E. Mann, Charles L. Schultze, John D. Steinbruner, R. Kent Weaver, and Joshua M. Wiener.

Clinical research presents health care providers with information on the natural history and clinical presentations of disease as well as diagnostic and treatment options. In today's healthcare system, patients, physicians, clinicians and family caregivers often lack the sufficient scientific data and evidence they need to determine the best course of treatment for the patients' medical conditions. Initial National Priorities for Comparative Effectiveness Research(CER) is designed to fill this knowledge gap by assisting patients and healthcare providers across diverse settings in making more informed decisions. In this 2009 report, the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Comparative Effectiveness Research Prioritization establishes a working definition of CER, develops a priority list of research topics, and identifies the necessary requirements to support a robust and sustainable CER enterprise. As part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Congress appropriated $1.1 billion in federal support of CER, reflecting legislators' belief that better decisions about the use of health care could improve the public's health and reduce the cost of care. The Committee on Comparative Effectiveness Research Prioritization was successful in preparing a list 100 top priority CER topics and 10 recommendations for best practices in the field.

"If the subject of influence in Washington interests you, this series of books deserves your respectful attention...it has changed the ways in which American politicians think about the budget." - The Washington Post For the first time in more than four decades, the federal budget has registered two consecutive surpluses, and the need to reduce the deficit is not casting a pall over the policy debate. This new, highly accessible book examines the policy options that are available in this new environment to address the new and recurring challenges that face the nation. The book, which continues the Brookings Institution's highly acclaimed and influential Setting National Priorities series, will serve as a guide for understanding many of the complex issues that will be discussed during the presidential and congressional campaigns of 2000. The book centers around three themes: providing opportunity in the domestic arena, restoring confidence in government, and adapting to the post-Cold War international environment. It tackles such critical issues as Medicare and social security, tax reform, and foreign policy spending, as well as many areas not included in previous editions; namely, education, urban problems, the environment, trade, government renewal and reform, crime and drugs, and families. In addition to the editors, the contributers are Gary Burtless, I. M. Destler, John J. DiIulio Jr., William Gale, Bruce Katz, Donald F. Kettl, Paul C. Light, Thomas E. Mann, Michael O'Hanlon, Paul R. Portney, Diane Ravitch, Isabel V. Sawhill, and James Sly.

This book examines methods for selecting topics and setting priorities for clinical practice guideline development and implementation. Clinical practice guidelines are "systematically defined statements to assist practitioner and patient decisions about appropriate health care for specific clinical circumstances." In its assessment of processes for setting priorities, the committee considers the principles of consistency with the organization's mission, implementation feasibility, efficiency, utility of the results to the organization, and openness and defensibilityâ€"a principle that is especially important to public agencies. The volume also examines the implications of health care restructuring for priority setting and topic selection, including the link between national and local approaches to guidelines development.