The Center for Health Economics & Policy helps nurture the next generation of public health experts. Learn more about two of them.
Author: Center for Advancing Health Services, Policy & Economics Research
Medicaid Expansion after one year; over 270,000 enrolled
Center for Health Economics & Policy co-Director, Timothy McBride has written a blog post updating the Medicaid expansion enrollment numbers in Missouri.
Center supports research on changes in Health Insurance Marketplace conditions from 2014-22
Researchers from the Center for Health Economics and Policy have collaborated with the Rural Policy Research Institute Center for Rural Policy Analysis at the University of Iowa on a new study on fluctuating Health Insurance Marketplace conditions.
Center releases white paper on strategies to improve outcomes for diabetes and obesity

The Center for Health Economics & Policy offers a look at strategies to improve health outcomes for people with diabetes and obesity.
Medicaid expansion enrollment hits 220,000 on vote anniversary
Center for Health Economics & Policy co-Director, Timothy McBride, PhD, updates us on the state of Missouri Medicaid enrollment applications.
Two new WashU faculty engage with center on matters of health equity and policy
The Center for Health Economics & Policy works with and helps amplify WashU faculty interested in health policy. The team welcomes two new faculty members for collaboration.
Medicaid expansion enrollment hits 183,000; over 200,000 have applied since August
Read the latest on Missouri Medicaid expansion enrollment in this blog post by Center for Health Economics & Policy co-Director, Timothy McBride.
Center suggests policy changes that could reduce Missouri’s high maternal and infant mortality rates and racial disparities
A new policy brief by the Center for Health Economics & Policy and colleagues in doula services suggests ways to lower Missouri’s high maternal & infant mortality rates.
Medicaid expansion enrollment hits 100 thousand, delays in processing applications remain
Tim McBride, co-director of the Center for Health Economics & Policy, offers the latest details about MO Medicaid expansion enrollment in this comprehensive blog post.
“Fathers First” initiative focuses on how fathers can impact infant and mother’s health
Jesse Davis, MD runs the Fathers First initiative and discusses the program’s importance to infant and maternal health outcomes.
New study looks at the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program
A new study looks at how changes in policy toward the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program has had an impact on hospitals serving impoverished patients.
Faculty scholar receives NIH grant to study impact of social services on multiple forms of family violence
Derek Brown’s engagement with the Center for Health Economics & Policy has aided in his research on how social services impact incidences of family violence.
Center works with state officials to highlight funding sources that strengthen mental health programs, services
The Center for Health Economics and Policy is working with the Missouri Department of Health to highlight potential funding sources that will help strengthen mental health services across Missouri.
Medicaid enrollment in Missouri begins; applications appear vigorous
Written by Timothy McBride, co-director, Center for Health Economics and Policy The expansion of Medicaid in Missouri began in 2021, and after resolution of a lawsuit at the Missouri Supreme Court in July, enrollment applications were accepted starting on October 2021. As of January 21, 2022, enrollment in the adult expansion group (AEG) had reached […]
Center creates user-friendly Missouri Medicaid Enrollment Tracking tool
The Center for Health Economics and Policy at the Institute for Public Health has launched the Missouri Medicaid Enrollment Tracking Dashboard, as a resource for the community to track the impact of Medicaid expansion on Missouri Medicaid enrollment. Timothy McBride, PhD, co-director of the Center for Health Economics and Policy says, “We are excited to […]
Center reports recommendations for maternal health policy changes in Missouri

Maternal and infant health is a critical problem for Missouri and the rest of the United States. While many other health metrics have improved in the U.S. in recent decades, outcomes for mothers and infants have worsened. Maternal mortality rates in Missouri and nationally have been rising in recent years; Missouri’s rate exceeds the national […]
Center issues report on benefits of expanding Missouri’s Primary Care Health Homes Program for the chronically ill
The Center for Health Economics & Policy has released a report suggesting that Medicaid recipients can receive better quality, comprehensive home care by expanding the state’s “Primary Care Health Homes” (PCHH) program. The program currently enables patients with at least two chronic health conditions (heart problems, diabetes, etc.) to receive extra help managing their health […]
Center releases analysis of what’s ahead for Medicaid expansion in Missouri

By Kim Furlow, communications manager & Timothy McBride, Co-director of the Center for Health Economics & Policy at the Institute for Public Health Since Medicaid expansion was passed by voters in Missouri in August 2020, the Center for Health Economics & Policy at Washington University has been producing analyses to help state and local service […]
Medicaid Expansion: Implementation update & implications for Missouri
Timothy D. McBride, PhD, MS, the Bernard Becker Professor at the Brown School and Co-director of the Center for Health Economics & Policy at the Institute for Public Health describes the latest efforts to implement Medicaid expansion.
Center for Health Economics & Policy publishes white paper with recommendations for Medicaid transformation
The Center for Health Economics & Policy is helping write recommendations for logistics surrounding MO Medicaid expansion.
New report shows disproportionate COVID-19 impact

As stated in its introduction, a new research brief citing research from the Center for Health Economics & Policy “aims to quantify COVID-19-related health disparities in the St. Louis region using ZIP code-level data on confirmed cases and demographic composition.” Mirroring racialized COVID-19 trends in other metropolitan areas, the report focuses on observed, yet unexplained, […]
The health policy debate is about to change completely: There has been disproportionate focus on “Medicare for All”
The 2020 election is well underway and health policy seems to have dominated the debate so far, in many ways. This has surprised some people, and it is raising some worries among Democratic strategists. It is also frustrating many analysts who study health policy, who find that the “debate” is missing the mark. But the […]
Center for Health Economics & Policy offers new tool to help researchers
Written by Kim Furlow, communications manager for the Institute for Public Health Our Center for Health Economics and Policy is helping Washington University researchers get policy-focused research circulated to a broader audience through policy briefs. Our center’s newly-created Policy Brief Toolkit is designed to help researchers translate research findings into policy briefs, which can be […]
Medicaid Work Requirements: What Would the Impact be in Missouri on Enrollment, Costs and Health?
Written by Linda Li, MPH, Abigail Barker, PhD, Leah Kemper, MPH, Timothy McBride, PhD | February 2019 In 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced support for state efforts to condition Medicaid coverage on fulfilling a work requirement. For the first time in the program’s history, certain beneficiaries can be required to […]
Policy matters for doctors-in-training & their future patients
Written by Akua Nuako, medical student class of 2021, Washington University in St. Louis I am often awestruck by the ingenuity of today’s medical advancements. During my first year of medical school, I’ve been captivated by research on promising developments like cancer treatments that only target malignant cells, gene editing that addresses health issues rooted […]
Moving toward a healthier Missouri: Re-instituting therapy services in Missouri Medicaid
Originally posted by the Clark-Fox Policy Institute, written by Mary Mellem, Gary Parker, and Atia Thurman In October 2017, the Center for Health Economics & Policy at the Institute for Public Health and the Clark-Fox Policy Institute at the Brown School at Washington University hosted Transforming Healthcare in Missouri: Ideas for Innovation and Investment to generate […]
Repeal or replace? Is a bipartisan approach to repairing Obamacare feasible?
Written by Timothy D. McBride, PhD, MS, co-director for the Center for Health Economics and Policy The effort to “repeal and replace” Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act, ACA) has been a major goal of the Republicans since the ACA was passed. Achieving this goal has been elusive – first President Obama blocked all such efforts, […]
Transforming healthcare by transforming payment
The Center for Health Economics and Policy co-hosted a major health policy event this October. Together with the Clark-Fox Policy Institute, we convened nearly 150 providers, researchers, policymakers, and patient advocates to discuss ideas for transforming healthcare in Missouri. One theme repeated throughout the day was that we as a society need to shift our […]
Facilitating health insurance enrollment and decision support
Written by Mary Politi, PhD, professor in the School of Medicine At the time of publishing, Mary Politi was an associate professor in the School of Medicine At an enrollment event in 2015, I met a woman from a rural county in Missouri who was an outspoken supporter of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). She […]
Drug policy, public health, and wellness
Written by Richard Grucza, PhD, MPE, associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Washington University School of Medicine My colleagues and I have long been interested in policies that restrict young peoples’ legal access to alcohol and tobacco. We’ve learned that restricting drinking or smoking during the teen years has long term benefits such […]
Public health and social work in the political process
I recently returned to Washington University after a yearlong stint as the American Public Health Association’s Public Health Fellow in Government in Washington D.C. While there, I worked as congressional staff for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York). This fellowship offered a chance-of-a-lifetime opportunity to work directly on federal policymaking. While challenging, scary, and sometimes even comical, this experience was […]
Drug pricing: Where do we go after the election?
Martin Shkreli. Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Mylan. Just a year ago, most Americans devoted little time and attention to the question of pharmaceutical pricing. Now, after a series of highly publicized scandals involving individuals and companies who hike the prices of products like the EpiPen or Daraprim with impunity, public awareness of these issues has dramatically increased […]
Why policy* is the perfect fit for public health and social work professionals
Written by Susan Stepleton PhD, chair of the policy specialization at the Brown School When I mention to someone that I work at the Brown School, a typical assumption – voiced or unvoiced – is “Oh, you teach about poverty or epidemiology or child welfare or LGBTQ issues or homelessness.” Well, yes, of course we […]
Center for Health Economics & Policy to offer technical assistance through the Just-In-Time Funding Program of the ICTS
The Center for Health Economics and Policy (CHEP) has become a Core eligible for funding through the Just-In-Time (JIT) Core Usage Funding Program, offered by the Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences (ICTS). This program is designed to provide quick access to funding to utilize technical assistance available through ICTS-affiliated Cores, including CHEP, to support research advancing […]
Center for Health Economics & Policy funds two pilot projects
The Center for Health Economics and Policy (CHEP) pilot program announces funding for two projects in the inaugural round of funding from CHEP. The funding for these year-long projects begins on September 1, 2016. Correlates of Enactment of State Legislation Related to HPV Vaccines PI: Amy Eyler Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted […]
Economics, policy, and racial disparities
Health disparities has been an important topic for public health researchers for years, with much or most of the focus on disparities across racial groups in the US, where we see wide disparities on almost every outcome measure. In the St. Louis area and region, health disparities remains a critical topic where if anything the […]
Center for Health Economics & Policy launches
Washington University in St. Louis has announced the launch of the Center for Health Economics and Policy (CHEP), to be housed in the Institute for Public Health. The goal of the new center is to improve population health in America by encouraging health policy and economics research and dissemination. The center will be co-directed by […]