Dean Katherine Baicker on Evidence-Based Health Policy

In the new issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Katherine Baicker, Dean and the Emmett Dedmon Professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, explores the role of evidence in health policy and seeks to clarify what the term “evidence-based health policy” means in practice.

"Better policy requires being both honest about our goals and clear-eyed about the evidence."

Dean Baicker and her co-author, Amitabh Chandra, suggest that there has never have perfect information, but using the best information available - while understanding its limitations - will lead to better policy outcomes. They note that evidence of a policy's effects is not the only factor that policymakers may want to consider, but that rigorous evidence should always be an important part of the decision-making process.

Read the full piece in the New England Journal of Medicine