Health Care Policy

Making national programs and policies work at the clinic level

QUERI supports VA’s implementation of the Foundations for Evidence-based Policymaking Act of 2018 (US Public Law 115-435), which requires federal agencies to justify budgets using evidence, by conducting rigorous evaluations addressing VA strategic and legislative priorities and enhancing enterprise-wide approaches to evaluation.

Guided by the Learning Health System framework and the QUERI Implementation Roadmap, QUERI is deploying a systematic approach to implement national priorities at the frontline level:

Engaging VA leaders to nominate and rank-order priorities
Funding evaluations and quality improvement initiatives to address identified priorities
Evaluating the impact of these initiatives on VA policy and Veteran health using the QUERI Impact Framework

QUERI circular process

QUERI Evidence-based Policy Evaluation Centers

In 2022, QUERI launched six Evidence-based Policy Evaluation Centers to expand evaluation capacity in response to increased evaluation demand after the passage of the Evidence Act. Coordinated by QUERI’s Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC), this national network of evaluation centers are applying novel methods to address complex policy and program questions that cut across multiple clinical program offices, service lines, and regions and are supporting development of VA annual evaluation plans and learning agendas.

	Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC) Led by Austin Frakt, Melissa Garrido, Steve Pizer Provide rigorous data analysis to support the development and sustainment of policy, planning, and management initiatives and coordinate VA’s response to the Evidence Act, including reviewing legislative proposals and developing annual evaluation plans, learning agendas, and capacity assessments. Learn more.
	Center for Policy Evaluation (CPE) Led by Todd Wagner, David Chan, Anita Vashi Support operational decision-making by leveraging causal inference methods with administrative data, paired with qualitative methods, to provide unbiased estimates of the effects of implementing VA policies and programs. Learn more.
	Charleston, Providence, and Iowa City Evidence-Based Policy Evaluation Center (CPIC) Led by Neal Axon, Michelle Mengeling, Jim Rudolph Leverages content and methodological expertise across three VAMCs and universities to conduct rigorous program and policy evaluations that are responsive and scaled to the needs of VA leadership. Learn more
	Evidence to Policy Evaluation Center for Veterans (EPEC-Vet) Led by Frances Weaver, Kevin Stroupe Utilizes a model adapted from the CDC evaluation framework to conduct rigorous evaluations of high priority programs and policies and assess variation in implementation, economic impact, and unintended consequences across evaluations. Learn more.
	Houston Evidence-Based Rapid Measurement Evaluations Center (HERMES) Led by Sylvia Hysong Utilizes the Visualize, Plan, Implement, Close framework to optimize workflows and execute effective evaluations, specializing in systems-level factors surrounding coordination, workflow, and clinical efficiency. Learn more.
	Leading Evaluations to Advance VA’s Response to National Priorities (LEARN) Led by Kristina Cordasco, Sonya Gabrielian, Tanya Olmos-Ochoa Support VA’s transformation to a Learning Health System and VA evidence-based continual improvement efforts by utilizing multi-disciplinary theories and mixed-method approaches in conducting partnered evaluations that address VA and legislative priorities. Learn more.
	SAlt Lake EvIdence-Based EvaluatioN CenTer for Policy (SALIENT) Led by Mary Jo Pugh, Jolie Haun, P. Jon White Applies Lean Sprint/Six Sigma for rapid, efficient evaluation design and implementation and continuous process improvement. Learn more.