We are an award-winning leader dedicated to improving the experiences of healthcare consumers and patients.

Robert Krughoff founded the Center for the Study of Services (CSS) as a nonprofit organization, dedicated to evaluating consumer service providers and reporting comparative information on these service providers. Just two years later, Consumers' CHECKBOOK magazine launched in the Washington, DC area. In 1979, Checkbook publishes the first print edition of the Guide to Health Plans for Federal Employees, providing total cost comparisons for every FEHB plan in the U.S.

CSS developed and implemented the first nationwide survey of health plan members for public reporting, surveying 150,000 members of 265 health plans participating in the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. A few years later, building on CSS's expertise in survey administration, quality/performance measurement, and reporting, CSS launched the Healthcare Research Group. Over the next twenty+ years, CSS is certified to conduct many different surveys, including the HEDIS/CAHPS survey, Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug CAHPS Surveys, Health Outcomes Surveys, In-Center Hemodialysis CAHPS Surveys, and many more.

Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP) chose CSS to administer its Patient Experience Survey, and CSS has administered similar surveys for MHQP periodically ever since, with results publicly reported on the MHQP website and through other outlets. CSS conducts other multi-payer, publicly-reported surveys in California, Tennessee, Colorado, and Missouri.

In response to the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Checkbook launches its first Individuals & Families marketplace plan comparison tool to help consumers determine their eligibility for premium subsidies and to compare ACA health plans on total cost.

Robert Krughoff retires as the President of CSS. Paul Kallaur, who built CSS's Healthcare Research Group, takes the role of President. Kallaur takes over a thriving, multi-faceted organization with the ability to collect and analyze data as part of helping consumers make decisions about services, and healthcare in particular.

CSS continues to guide the industry as a leading survey research organization, collecting and analyzing data that helps payers and providers improve consumers' experiences with their healthcare.