Glossary: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Fee

Image courtesy of OpenClipartVectors on Pixabay.com
Image courtesy of OpenClipartVectors on Pixabay.com

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Fee is a fee imposed as part of the Affordable Care Act.

The fee, presently $2.18 per participant in a health plan, funds the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. According to the IRS:

The institute will assist, through research, patients, clinicians, purchasers and policy-makers, in making informed health decisions by advancing the quality and relevance of evidence-based medicine. The institute will compile and distribute comparative clinical effectiveness research findings.

The fee is due by July 31st of each year. It took effect for plan years ending after September 30, 2012, and will continue through plan years ending before October 1, 2019.

For further reading on this blog, check out this post I did in July 2014: Have an HRA? Deadline for Patient-Centered Outcomes Trust Fund Fee Looms