Rita F. Redberg, MD, MSc, FACC

Rita F. Redberg, MD, MSc, FACC

University of California, San Francisco

Titles and Affiliations: 

• Cardiologist and Professor of Medicine and Director of Women’s Cardiovascular Services at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)

Dr. Rita Redberg has been a cardiologist and Professor of Medicine and Director of Women’s Cardiovascular Services at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) since 1990.  Dr. Redberg is currently the Chief Editor of JAMA Internal Medicine (formerly Archives of ) and has spearheaded the journal’s new focus on health care reform and “less is more”, which highlights areas of health care with no known benefit and definite risks.  Her research interests are in the area of health policy and technology assessment focusing on the need for inclusion of women in clinical trials and for sex-specific evidence, most recently focusing in the area of medical devices.

Dr. Redberg has had a long standing commitment to women and heart disease and cofounded the UCSF Center of Excellence in Women’s Health in 1997.  She was honored to receive the Women’s Day Red Dress Award in 2011 for her leadership in the area of heart disease in women and the Bay Area American Heart Association Red Dress Award in 2010.  She served on the Scientific Advisory Board of Women Heart from 2002-2012.

Dr. Redberg is a member of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, which advises Congress on Medicare payment issues.  She also served on the Medicare Evidence Development and Coverage Advisory Committee (MEDCAC) from 2003-2006 and was reappointed in 2012 as its Chair.  Dr Redberg is a member of the California Technology Assessment Forum, the Medical Policy Technology and Advisory Committee, and the Food and Drug Administration Cardiovascular Devices Expert Panel, and she is a consultant for the Center for Medical Technology Policy.  She gave Congressional testimony four times in 2011 in hearings related to the issue of balancing safety and innovation in medical device approvals.  Dr. Redberg worked in the office of Senator Hatch and with the Senate Judiciary Committee on FDA-related matters during her tenure as a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow, 2003-2006.

Dr. Redberg has authored several books, including You Can Be a Woman Cardiologist, Heart Healthy: The Step-by-Step Guide to Preventing and Healing Heart Disease, and Betty Crocker Cookbook for Women: the Complete Guide to Women’s Health and Wellness at Every Stage of Life.  She has done hundreds of radio, television, and newspaper interviews on health related topics, including being featured in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, and on National Public Radio and the Today Show.

Dr. Redberg was a member of the Institute of Medicine’s Learning Health Care Committee, which produced the report Best Care at Lower Cost in September 2012.  She chaired the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (ACC) Writing Group on Primary Prevention Performance Measures and is a member of the ACC’s Clinical Quality Committee and serves on its Quality in Technology Work Group.  She does comparative effectiveness research and serves on the ACC’s Comparative Effectiveness Work Group, represents the ACC on the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review Advisory Board, and serves on other ACC Committees, including several on appropriate use of cardiac imaging.  Dr. Redberg graduated from Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania Medical School and has a Master of Science in Health Policy and Administration degree from the London School of Economics.