– Report will be subject of public meeting of New England Comparative Effectiveness Public Advisory Council (CEPAC) on December 13, 2013 –

Boston, Mass., November 8, 2013 – The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) has posted the draft report “The Comparative Clinical Effectiveness and Value of Supplemental Screening Tests Following Negative Mammography in Women with Dense Breast Tissue” for public comment. This report will be the subject of deliberation and vote at the next public meeting of the New England Comparative Effectiveness Public Advisory Council (CEPAC) on Friday, December 13, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. This report is a supplement to the assessment of the same name that formed the basis for a meeting of the California Technology Assessment Forum (CTAF). Both CTAF and CEPAC are flagship initiatives of ICER and provide objective, independent guidance on how medical evidence can be applied to regional clinical practice and payer policy decisions. The report prepared for CEPAC has been adapted for decision-makers in New England, and includes budget impact and cost-effectiveness analyses using regional data.

This report aims to help the members of CEPAC, and the public, understand the latest evidence on the relative effectiveness and value of different screening options for women with dense breast tissue. The report will be available for public comments until Tuesday, December 10, 2013.

Meeting Details
Date: Friday, December 13, 2013
Time: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM ET
Location: Joseph B. Martin Conference Center
Harvard Medical School
77 Avenue Louis Pasteur
Boston, MA 02115

Members of the public wishing to attend the meeting must register by December 6, 2013 by visiting the “Meeting Registration” section of cepac.icer-review.org. The website also includes instructions for those wishing to submit written comments ahead of time, and those requesting the opportunity to make public comments at the meeting. Members of the public wishing to deliver an oral comment during the public meeting must register to do so no later than December 10, 2013. An audio recording of the CEPAC meeting will be made available on the CEPAC website following the meeting for members of the public unable to attend the in-person meeting. The meeting will also be broadcast via live webcast (details will be available on the CEPAC website).

About CEPAC
CEPAC, an independent, regional body of practicing physicians, methodological experts, as well as patient/public members, provides objective, independent guidance on the application of medical evidence to clinical practice and payer policy decisions across New England. Led by the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, CEPAC was originally funded by a federal grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), but is now supported by a broad coalition of state Medicaid leaders, integrated provider groups, public and private payers and patient representatives. For more information on CEPAC, please visit cepac.icer-review.org.

About ICER
The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) is an independent non-profit healthcare research organization dedicated to improving the interpretation and application of evidence in the healthcare system.

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