Barbara J. McNeil, MD, PhD, is the Ridley Watts Professor and founding head of the Department of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School. She is also a professor of radiology at Harvard Medical School and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Dr. McNeil’s research activities have focused on several areas, most notably technology assessment and quality of care. Her most recent work includes two large studies supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs. The first focused on a comparison of quality of care for veterans with cardiac disease with the care provided to Medicare beneficiaries seen in private settings. Its report led to the introduction of many changes in the care of veterans with cardiac disease. As a result of that study, she and her colleagues are currently performing a similar study on cancer care; they will study patients with lung cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, or several hematological malignancies. Dr. McNeil also works closely with the national Blue Cross Blue Shield Association in several areas related to the identification and dissemination of approaches to improving either the quality or the efficiency of care in plans across the country.

Dr. McNeil received her AB degree from Emmanuel College, her MD from Harvard Medical School, and her PhD from Harvard University. She is a member of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academy of Sciences (where she is chair of its Board of Health Care Services) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Dr. McNeil is also a member of the Blue Cross Technology Evaluation Commission (TEC), the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee, and the Council for Performance Measurement for the JCAHO. She recently began serving as chair of an IOM committee on the identification of high clinical value services. Previously Dr. McNeil served as a member of the Prospective Payment Assessment Commission and the Publications Committee of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Learn more about Dr. McNeil's work by viewing the following featured news articles on 2/6/09 and news briefs on 10/23/08, 8/20/08, 6/17/08, 3/18/08, 3/6/08, 12/19/07, 9/15/07, 6/7/07, 4/15/07, and 3/27/07.