Mark Alan Hanson

Senior Quantitative Analyst

Santa Monica Office

Education

Ph.D. in policy, planning and development, University of Southern California; M.P.A. in public affairs, Indiana University; M.S. in environmental science and policy, Indiana University; B.S. in psychobiology and business administration, University of California, Los Angeles

One Page Bio

Overview

Mark Hanson is a senior quantitative analyst at the RAND Corporation, and an adjunct associate professor at the Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California. His research interests include healthcare quality, environmental sustainability, transportation planning, urban planning, and disaster recovery. Hanson received his Ph.D. in policy, planning, and development from the University of Southern California.

Research Focus

Concurrent Non-RAND Positions

Associate Professor, adjunct, University of Southern California

Honors & Awards

Provost's Award, University of Southern California
Top Cited Article 2020-2021, Alzheimer's & Dementia: Diagnostic Assessment & Disease Monitoring

Publications

Report
Economic Value of Advanced Transfemoral Prosthetics
RAND researchers developed a simulation model to assess the clinical outcomes and costs of microprocessor-controlled knees compared with more-traditional non-microprocessor-controlled knees.
Sep 5, 2017
Journal Article
Does Medicare Advantage Enrollment Affect Home Healthcare Use?
Medicare Advantage beneficiaries use less home health than do their Fee-for-Service counterparts, but there is marked regional variation in use by both groups.
Jan 25, 2017
Report
Evaluating the Impact of Policies to Regulate Involuntary Out-of-Network Charges on New Jersey Hospitals
To inform the debate in the New Jersey state legislature, this report analyzes the role of payments for involuntary out-of-network care for New Jersey hospitals' financial performance and simulates the effect of policies to limit such payments.
Nov 22, 2016
Journal Article
Assessing the Value of High-Quality Care for Work-Associated Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in a Large Integrated Health Care System: Study Design
Demonstrating an association between higher quality care for work-associated carpal tunnel syndrome and both clinical outcomes and costs could spur more effective policies.
Oct 31, 2016
Journal Article
Differences in Nursing Home Quality Between Medicare Advantage and Traditional Medicare Patients
Researchers found little difference in the quality of nursing home care provided to Medicare enrollees in managed care and those enrolled in traditional fee-for-service nursing homes.
Oct 18, 2016
Journal Article
A Qualitative Inquiry on Palliative and End-of-Life Care Policy Reform
Despite recent broad interest in reforming end-of-life care policies, the palliative care field faces many challenges to expanding use.
Apr 20, 2016
Journal Article
Comparative Effectiveness of Fidaxomicin for Treatment of Clostridium Difficile Infection
The authors assess the differential clinical and economic value of fidaxomicin compared with metronidazole and vancomycin in the treatment of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI).
Jul 1, 2014
Research Brief
Mapping Gender Gaps in Health Care
Mapping regional rates of cholesterol screening among patients with cardiovascular disease and diabetes reveals significant gender gaps: Women are often less likely to receive screenings.
Jun 11, 2014
Report
Mapping Gender Differences in Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes Care: A Pilot Assessment of LDL Cholesterol Testing Rates in a California Health Plan
The care women receive for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes -- and their health outcomes -- lag behind those of men, even for routine care. This pilot project maps gender differences in CVD and diabetes care using data from a large health plan.
Jan 16, 2014
Multimedia
A Prototype Interactive Mapping Tool to Target Low Health Literacy in Missouri
Describes a web-based mapping tool to help healthcare decisionmakers identify neighborhood-level ''hotspots'' of suboptimal health or healthcare that may be due to low health literacy.
Apr 29, 2010
Research Brief
Rebuilding Affordable Housing on the Gulf Coast: Lessons Learned in Mississippi from Hurricane Katrina
To support development of affordable housing for those displaced by Hurricane Katrina and for the region's newcomers, researchers from the RAND Gulf States Policy Institute studied Mississippi housing and made recommendations for policymakers.
Dec 22, 2008
Report
Balancing Environment and Development: Costs, Revenues, and Benefits of the Western Riverside County Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan
A large habitat-conservation reserve is being created in western Riverside County to mitigate development effects on threatened and endangered species. This monograph examines the plan's costs, revenues, and effects on the permitting process.
Oct 18, 2008
Research Brief
Reducing Traffic Congestion in Los Angeles
This research brief identifies key factors determining L.A. transportation policy needs and makes 13 recommendations that together could reduce congestion -- arguably the worst in the country -- substantially within five years.
Sep 3, 2008
Report
Moving Los Angeles: Short-Term Policy Options for Improving Transportation
The authors of this book recommend strategies for reducing traffic congestion in the Los Angeles area that could significantly enhance quality of life, reduce economic and environmental costs, and improve social justice within about five years.
Aug 23, 2008
Report
Post-Katrina Recovery of the Housing Market Along the Mississippi Gulf Coast
This RAND Gulf States Policy Institute report describes the pre-Hurricane Katrina housing markets in Mississippi's three coastal counties, the damage they sustained, current status, and what might inhibit recovery.
Jan 1, 2008
Research Brief
Assessing Progress in Rebuilding the Housing Market in Mississippi in the Wake of Katrina
This research brief summarizes a study showing that Hurricane Katrina's damage compounded an affordable-housing shortage and that recovery has been uneven and will take at least another three years with a total estimated cost of more than $4 billion.
Dec 3, 2007
Research Brief
What Progress Is Mississippi Making in Rebuilding Its Affordable Housing Stock After Katrina?
This fact sheet summarizes key findings of a comprehensive quantitative assessment of both the extent and nature of Hurricane Katrina damage to the housing stock in Mississippi's coastal counties and progress that has been made toward recovery.
Oct 1, 2007
Report
Rebuilding Housing Along the Mississippi Coast: Ideas for Ensuring an Adequate Supply of Affordable Housing
Identifies policy and implementation options that could help Mississippi communities address affordable-housing issues, considering challenges in providing such housing and strategies for dealing with those challenges.
May 15, 2006
Draft
The Role of Energy Efficiency in Homebuying Decisions: Results of Initial Focus Group Discussions
Focus-group discussions of homeowners were analyzed to assess the role of energy efficiency in their home-purchase decisions.
Apr 11, 2006
Draft
Making a Tough Sell: Options for Promoting Energy Efficiency in New California Homes
Dec 21, 2004
Report
Assessing Natural Gas and Oil Resources: An Example of a New Approach in the Greater Green River Basin
This report presents a new approach to assessing natural gas and oil resources that is intended to help guide strategic land use planning by expanding the scope of these assessments to include economic and environmental considerations.
2003
Report
Assessing Gas and Oil Resources in the Intermountain West: Review of Methods and Framework For a New Approach
The authors examine four recent traditional assessments of the nation's potential supply of natural gas and oil resources.
2002
Report
The Public Benefit of Energy Efficiency to the State of Washington
The authors estimated energy efficiency by means of energy intensity measures controlled for sectoral composition and energy prices, among other factors.
2002
Report
The Public Benefit of Energy Efficiency to the State of Massachusetts
The authors show that savings from commercial and industrial energy-efficiency programs have provided a positive return on utility investment, and they demonstrate benefits of energy efficiency for Massachusetts households, particularly for low-income households.
2002
Report
The Public Benefit of Energy Efficiency to the State of Minnesota
The authors show that savings from commercial and industrial energy-efficiency programs have provided a positive return on utility investment, and they demonstrate benefits of energy efficiency for Minnesota households, particularly for low-income households.
2002
Report
The Implications of the September 11 Terrorist Attacks for California: A Collection of Issue Papers
This collection of issue papers illustrates that there is work to be done to improve our understanding of terrorism's longer-term effects.
2002
Report
A New Approach to Assessing Gas and Oil Resources in the Intermountain West
The authors propose that comprehensive resource assessment focus not on land access restrictions but on determining what resources are recoverable.
2002
Report
Load Center Power Generation in Burbank, Glendale, and Pasadena: Potential Benefits for the Cities and for California
California's deregulated electricity sector seemed to work as intended until the summer of 2000 when prices on the spot market for electricity spiked, the cost of power increased tenfold, and power shortages occurred, culminating in rolling blackouts the following winter.
2001
Periodical
RAND Review: Vol. 25, No. 2, Summer 2001
Recommends ambitious global reorganizations of the U.S. and allied armed forces; proposes a national tracking system to measure the quality of U.S. health care; and suggests that municipal power generation would be a good energy investment.
2001