Economist; Professor of Policy Analysis, Pardee RAND Graduate School
Zachary Wagner is an economist at RAND and a professor of policy analysis at Pardee RAND Graduate School. He is a health economist with training in both applied microeconomics and public health. His research uses economic theory and econometrics to study how people make decisions about health and health care around the globe. Wagner's topical expertise includes take-up of health technology, quality of care in low-income countries, disasters and health, health insurance for the poor, community health workers, HIV/AIDS, child diarrhea, private sector health care, the opioid crisis, and family planning.
Wagner's research uses a variety of methodologies including randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental evaluations, analysis of large secondary data sets, cost-effectiveness analysis, and geospatial analysis. He has completed research in several countries in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia. He is currently leading two large NIH funded projects; one that studies how to improve treatment of child diarrhea in India and another that estimates the effect of natural disasters on child health in low- and middle-income countries. Wagner's research has been featured in leading journals including The Lancet, BMJ, PLOS Medicine, Health Affairs, and AEJ: Economic Policy. Prior to joining RAND, Wagner was a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford University. He holds a Ph.D. in health policy (economics track) from UC Berkeley and a Master's degree in international development from UC San Diego.
Ph.D. in health economics, University of California, Berkeley; M.A. in international development, University of California, San Diego
