Infectious Diseases

commentary

Can the Health Insurance System Handle Massive Medicaid Reductions?

For many who have or will soon lose Medicaid as monthly redeterminations restart, and for millions more who could lose insurance due to other factors like job loss, three recent policy developments might increase the chances that they find new health care coverage.

Christine Eibner @Chrissyeibner

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Reflecting on the Pandemic, RAND Turns 75, Labor Trafficking: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, 75 years of influential RAND research, reducing labor trafficking in the United States, and more.

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The Changing Landscape of Health Literacy During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Viral Transmission of Knowledge and Information Around COVID-19

With the official public health emergency ended, now is a good time to reflect on the changing landscape of health literacy and consider how we can improve health communication in the future.

Julia Bandini, Lucy B. Schulson, et al.

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RAND Turns 75: A Look Through the Decades At World-Changing Research

From anticipating the Space Age in the 1940s to studying gun policy and COVID-19 responses in the 2020s, RAND is celebrating 75 years of research that has made a difference.

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The End of the U.S. COVID-19 Public Health Emergency: Q&A with RAND Experts

We asked RAND experts to reflect on the past three years: What were the effects on the United States and around the world, what has changed, what are the most important takeaways, what was done right, and what was done wrong? At the same time, they looked ahead to what might be done to mitigate the health and geopolitical impacts of future pandemics.

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Ukraine's Recovery, Mental Health First Aid, School Staffing: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the trade-offs of Ukraine's reconstruction, the effects of a Mental Health First Aid training program, school staffing challenges, and more.

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An Opportunity to Learn from Our COVID-19 Successes and Failures

COVID-19 showed that the U.S. pandemic response plans of the past were no match for a protracted nationwide health emergency. What lessons were learned that could help the United States effectively protect its population and other vital national interests going forward?

Mahshid Abir

commentary

A Potential Backslide in Mental Health Care for Millions of Americans

The expiration of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency declaration will have broad-sweeping effects, and one of the most significant is little known: It could begin undoing the expansion of mental health care access for millions of Americans.

Ryan K. McBain @ryankmcbain

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Violence in Schools, Neurodiversity and National Security, Drug Cartels: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on preventing school violence, dealing with drug cartels, the benefits of a neurodivergent national security workforce, and more.

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Can Grade Retention Help with COVID-19 Learning Recovery in Schools?

Early grade retention is getting more attention as a potential way to make up for missed learning during the pandemic. But retaining kids without providing the necessary supports or failing to identify the right kids using objective criteria will likely yield ineffective results or even lead to adverse effects.

Umut Ozek @uozek, Louis T. Mariano

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20 Years After the Iraq War, China-Russia Ties, Correctional Education: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on reflecting on the Iraq War, the pandemic and prison education, North Korea’s latest threats, and more.

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Healthy Nation, Safe Nation: Build Health Security into National Security

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed a need for a more-robust health security paradigm within the broader national security context. But addressing preparedness and response shortfalls for national-level challenges might not be fully possible without first addressing the glaring seams and gaps between the various stakeholder communities.

Mahshid Abir, Daniel M. Gerstein @Daniel_Gerstein

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U.S. Gun Laws, China's COVID Outbreak, Space in 2050: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on gun policy in America, the myth of America's “Ukraine fatigue,” the COVID outbreak in China, and more.

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Hackathon Focuses on Making Policing More Equitable

Hackathons bring new ideas and perspectives to hard policy problems and introduce college students to the field of policy analysis. The latest hackathon, hosted by Pardee RAND and RAND NextGen, explored ways to make the criminal justice system more equitable and more effective.

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Lost Opportunities to Contain COVID-19 in China

Three years after the SARS-COV-2 virus emerged in Wuhan, China is now facing a tsunami of COVID-19 infections. The unprecedented spread of the disease appears to have been fueled by an ill-timed change in COVID-19 policy and a lack of vaccination and boosting. A rethinking of national strategy could still help.

Jennifer Bouey @BoueyHuang