Sept 17 (Reuters) – US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday named eight new members to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, the committee that decides which preventive medical care should be provided to patients at no cost.
The Preventive Services Task Force, which typically holds three annual meetings and has 16 members, last met a year ago.
The new members include pediatric hematologist-oncologist Seth Corey, pediatrician Patrick Hunter and cardiovascular expert Ronald Karlsberg. Stephen Parente, who works in health finance, has also joined the panel.
Professor of preventive cardiology Venkatesh Murthy, family medicine physician Goldie Stands-Over-Bull, Louis Wilson, a gastroenterology specialist, and Dennis Wulfeck, a diagnostic radiologist, were also named members.
The committee is responsible for deciding which medical tests and treatments, such as routine breast cancer screening or drugs to prevent HIV infection, need to be provided cost-free under most health insurance plans.
The task force is an independent group of volunteer experts, but relies on support from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
