Mapping the Intersection of Research and Policy in Centers for Medicare National Coverage Decision Memos

TL;DR

This paper analyzes how scientific research influences Medicare policy decisions by mapping research articles and funding sources to specific coverage policies, enhancing transparency among stakeholders involved in evidence-based healthcare policy.

Contribution

It introduces a novel method of mapping research funding and production to Medicare coverage policies using policy documents, revealing stakeholder interactions.

Findings

Research funding sources are linked to specific Medicare policies.

Policy documents can improve transparency among stakeholders.

Mapping reveals the network of research influencing policy decisions.

Abstract

Evidence is a crucial component of federal policy, but the interactions between the various stakeholders involved in funding, producing, and using the results of scientific research, an important class of evidence, for federal policy are poorly understood. The national coverage determination process used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to make significant policies on healthcare coverage is an ideal candidate for studying the interactions between stakeholders producing and utilizing scientific research for policy. Memos produced during the national coverage determination process contain information that identifies the organizations funding and producing research articles cited by CMS policy staff. I use these data to map scientific articles and their funding sources to discrete federal policies with substantial economic and health impacts. My analysis highlights that information derived from policy documents can facilitate transparency among the stakeholders involved in funding, producing, and using evidence for federal policy.