Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Carey Brox
HCA 305
Lesson One
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
The President of the United States appoints a Secretary of Health and Human Services. That Secretary, a Cabinet member, oversees the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and within that Department there are twelve agencies. The agencies that most of us are already familiar with are the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is a statistical agency. Their current stated mission is “to improve the quality, safety, efficiency and effectiveness of health care for all Americans.”
The AHRQ was created in 1989 as the Agency for Healthcare Policy and Research (AHPR). It was created to have a ten year life span. When it started, it tried to partner with institutions on a wide range of projects with the hopes that certain medical conditions could be improved. There was also the idea at inception that the agency could make policy or assist in creating regulations. In five short years, the agency became involved heavily in politics and controversial reforms. That involvement almost culminated in the dissolution of the entire agency. So, the agency was forced to re-focus. So, in 1995, the agency eliminated the word “Policy” and replaced it with “Quality.” The agency abandoned part of its original mission because it was too controversial, expensive and had little impact on patient practice. They have since remained low profile, which explains why they are not a part of our general knowledge like the other agencies we know.
The AHRQ has eight offices within it and they are organized by area of study. Because they are tasked with improving health care quality, reducing medical costs and expanding access to health care to the public, the majority of their budget is ear marked for awarding grants. Eighty percent of their budget is specifically for grant funding. In
HCA 305
Lesson One
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
The President of the United States appoints a Secretary of Health and Human Services. That Secretary, a Cabinet member, oversees the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and within that Department there are twelve agencies. The agencies that most of us are already familiar with are the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is a statistical agency. Their current stated mission is “to improve the quality, safety, efficiency and effectiveness of health care for all Americans.”
The AHRQ was created in 1989 as the Agency for Healthcare Policy and Research (AHPR). It was created to have a ten year life span. When it started, it tried to partner with institutions on a wide range of projects with the hopes that certain medical conditions could be improved. There was also the idea at inception that the agency could make policy or assist in creating regulations. In five short years, the agency became involved heavily in politics and controversial reforms. That involvement almost culminated in the dissolution of the entire agency. So, the agency was forced to re-focus. So, in 1995, the agency eliminated the word “Policy” and replaced it with “Quality.” The agency abandoned part of its original mission because it was too controversial, expensive and had little impact on patient practice. They have since remained low profile, which explains why they are not a part of our general knowledge like the other agencies we know.
The AHRQ has eight offices within it and they are organized by area of study. Because they are tasked with improving health care quality, reducing medical costs and expanding access to health care to the public, the majority of their budget is ear marked for awarding grants. Eighty percent of their budget is specifically for grant funding. In