The American Journal of Managed Care is a peer-reviewed publication that considers clinical and policy issues of importance to managed care decision makers, ranging from primary care physicians to medical directors. Peer review is a two-step process. All papers undergo a substantive critical review, while many are also given a relevance review.



Substantive reviews involve a critical reading of and in-depth commentary on the manuscript. Drawing on the reviewer's knowledge of the literature and current practice in the subject area, these reviews examine the basic premises of the paper, evaluate the methods and analyses used, comment on the contribution the paper makes to the existing literature and to our general understanding of the topic, etc. We ask that substantive reviews be completed in 2 weeks.



Relevance reviews help our editors determine the importance of a paper to the journal's readers. To this end, we enlist real-world decision makers in managed care -- ie, medical directors, pharmacy directors, and other high-level policy makers -- to comment on the practical applicability of a paper. These reviews generally involve reading the abstract and rating the paper on a 10-point scale. Because these reviews are designed to provide a quick assessment, we ask that relevance reviews be completed within 72 hours.