Health and Health Care

RAND advances understanding of health and health behaviors and examines how the organization and financing of care affect costs, quality, and access. RAND's body of research—conducted primarily through the RAND Health division—includes innovative studies of health insurance, health care reform, health information technology, and women's health, as well as topical concerns such as obesity, complementary and alternative medicine, and PTSD in veterans and survivors of catastrophe.

Research conducted by: RAND Health; Military Health Policy Research; RAND Europe; RAND Drug Policy Research Center; RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment; RAND Labor and Population; RAND Gulf States Policy Institute

Featured at RAND

The Affordable Care Act: Four Key Policy Areas

Obama signing the ACA

With the complex process of implementing the ACA underway, RAND research is tracking the progress of implementation and assessing the potential consequences of choices facing federal and state governments, employers, families, and individuals.

Four Strategies to Contain America's Growing Health Care Spending

pills and coins

In its second term, the Obama Administration can restrain further health care spending growth—without compromising quality—by employing four broad strategies: fostering efficient and accountable providers, engaging and empowering consumers, promoting population health, and facilitating high-value innovation.

Events (40)

Palliative Care: Improving Quality of Life for the Seriously Ill — Feb 26, 2013

Health care professionals are always looking for more effective ways to relieve and prevent suffering among their patients and to enhance the quality of care. Join us for a discussion on what we know—and what we need to know—about the delivery of palliative care services.

Conference and Webcast on Public Health Regulations for Marijuana — Feb 11, 2013

ballot box with vote to legalize marijuana

Initiatives to legalize and regulate marijuana leave local, state, and federal policymakers facing new questions. To help leaders better understand the possible consequences, DPRC researchers moderated a forum in Washington, D.C., on February 11, 2013, about developing public health regulations for marijuana.

Adapting to Climate Change on the Coast: Lessons from Louisiana for Federal Policy — Jan 23, 2013

What can be done to reduce the chances of widespread disaster when the next "Sandy" hits? Jordan Fischbach will discuss how climate change and other long-term challenges can affect coasts and the tools federal or state policymakers will need to address them.

Skin in the Game: How Consumer-Directed Health Plans Can Affect the Cost and Use of Health Care — Dec 10, 2012

If half of Americans with employer-sponsored insurance enrolled in consumer-directed plans, annual health care costs would fall by an estimated $57 billion. Is this the answer to growing health care costs?

A RAND Policy Forum to Focus on Integrative Health Care and Medicine — Jul 18, 2012

Ian Coulter, who holds the Samueli Institute Chair in Policy for Integrative Medicine at RAND, was joined by fellow experts in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to discuss patient use of CAM and how hospitals, universities, and the U.S. military are integrating CAM into traditional medical practices throughout the United States.

Marijuana Legalization: What We Know and What We Don't — Jul 17, 2012

This November, voters in multiple states will be asked to consider propositions concerning decriminalization and legalization of marijuana. Join RAND experts for a panel discussion on marijuana laws and policies at both the state and federal level.

RAND Summer Institute Conferences Address Critical Issues for Our Aging Population — Jul 2, 2012

RAND Summer Institute is an annual event sponsored by the RAND Labor and Population Center for the Study of Aging; RSI's two conferences on aging are sponsored by the National Institute on Aging and the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research and convene in Santa Monica each July.

Prisoner Reentry and Public Health: Is Your State Ready? — Jun 21, 2012

Lois Davis discusses prisoner reentry—how health affects reentry into a community; the critical roles that health care providers, other social services, and family members play in successful reentry; and recommendations for improving access to care for this population in the current fiscal environment.

The Affordable Care Act's Individual Mandate in Play — Mar 20, 2012

RAND economist Christine Eibner spoke at a Bloomberg Government and RAND Corporation event in Washington, D.C. Eibner briefed the attendees on the results of her recent study, How Would Eliminating the Individual Mandate Affect Health Coverage and Premium Costs?

Policy Forum Addresses California's Prisoners Dilemma — Jan 24, 2012

In May 2011, a U.S. Supreme Court decision ordered California to reduce its prison population by 33,000 within two years. At this policy forum experts and policymakers will discuss the capacity of the health care safety net to meet the needs of ex-prisoners and of the public safety implications of prisoner reentry.

Funding for Global HIV Programs — Dec 15, 2011

Funding levels for global HIV programs have recently flattened out but the demand for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment in developing countries only continues to rise. This briefing addresses how global HIV programs can continue meeting the ever-growing need for services in the face of limited funding.

Conference Addresses Relationship Between Health, Aging, and Human Capital — Dec 5, 2011

The RAND Bing Center for Health Economics, RAND Labor and Population, and the Journal of Human Capital held a two-day Conference on Health, Aging, and Human Capital. Speakers included RAND's Nicole Maestas, NYU's Michael Grossman, and Harvard's David Wise; all conference videos are available online.

Conference Focuses on Health, Aging, and Human Capital — Dec 3, 2011

The RAND Bing Center for Health Economics and RAND Labor and Population, in collaboration with the Journal of Human Capital, held a two-day conference on health, aging, and human capital. Presenters addressed socioeconomic disparities in health, international differences in longevity and health, post-retirement financial decisions, and more.

VA Mental Health Care: How Good Is It and How Can We Make It Better? — Dec 1, 2011

In this December 2011 Congressional Briefing, Katherine Watkins discusses highlights and recommendations from her study on the VA's capacity to deliver care to veterans with mental health and substance use disorders and the quality of the care that is delivered.

Kellermann Presents Inaugural CCHSR Lecture — Nov 28, 2011

RAND Health Director Art Kellermann was the guest speaker at the inaugural lecture of the Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research (CCHSR), a joint effort of RAND Europe and the University of Cambridge. His talk focused on the challenges of acute care in the U.S. health system.

California Capitol Briefing on the Public Health Impacts of Prisoner Reentry — Nov 18, 2011

A May 2011 U.S. Supreme Court decision ordered California to reduce its prison population by 33,000 within two years. This Capitol Briefing will address which counties and communities will be most affected by reentry and the capacity of the health care safety net to meet ex-prisoner needs.

RAND Conference Focuses on Socioeconomic Growth and Development in Latin America — Nov 16, 2011

Labor issues, healthcare, education, social programs, and other factors affecting economic development in Latin America were the focus of a two-day conference in Santiago, Chile. RAND researchers joined university colleagues, industry experts, government leaders, and policymakers in discussing a range of critical topics.

The New Generation of Veterans — Nov 15, 2011

Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan face many challenges, particularly when it comes to health care. A RAND policy forum focuses on recent research into this new generation of combat veterans, including their experience with depression, PTSD, and substance misuse, as well as challenges they face in their physical health, their access to services, and their post-military careers.

How Growing Health Care Costs Affect the American Family — Oct 3, 2011

In this October 2011 Congressional Briefing, Art Kellermann will address the components of health care spending for the typical American family and how it affects buying power; whether slower health care cost growth would increase available family income; and whether the nation is getting sufficient value for its health care spending.

The Public Health System Since 9/11 — Aug 23, 2011

In this August 2011 Congressional Briefing, RAND researchers will share their findings regarding improvements in the U.S. public health system in the past decade and provide recommendations to effectively address future public health threats.

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