Commentary from Community Health and Environmental Policy

Energy Security
The Downside of a Lean Electric Grid
Oct 13, 2020
Ismael Arciniegas Rueda, Aaron Clark-Ginsberg @aclarkginsberg

The electric grid is central to U.S. national security. Recent disasters provide an example of the downsides of leanness. It's more costly to be less lean, but given our dependence on the electric grid and the increasing prevalence of disasters, safety and resilience may be greater priorities.
Autonomous Vehicles
How States and Localities Might Approach Operational Design Domains for AVs
Aug 20, 2020
Laura Fraade-Blanar, Maynard A. Holliday

An operational design domain (ODD) is a description of the conditions in which an autonomous vehicle is designed to operate safely. No nationwide ODD policy exists, but because ODD is partly about the characteristics of a specific location, state and local policies could be useful.
Emergency Preparedness
COVID-19 Highlights Disaster Policy's Need to Prepare for Multiple, Sequential Emergencies
Aug 11, 2020
Carlos Martín, Aaron Clark-Ginsberg @aclarkginsberg

The pandemic has highlighted the vulnerabilities many disaster-affected households face. As lawmakers debate a second relief package, they could reconsider how the emergency management framework responds to the effects of simultaneous hazards on individual-assistance and community-recovery programs.
Community Resilience
Stress Accumulates in Marginalized Communities, Generation After Generation
Jul 8, 2020

Psychologists and biologists have known for years that prolonged stress is toxic to the human body. A better understanding of how stress builds in communities—and the burden it puts on them—can lead to more effective policies to address it.
Global Climate Change
What Can the Coronavirus Teach Us About Preparing for a Heat Wave?
Jun 8, 2020
Jaime Madrigano @JMadrigano

The occurrence of a heat wave during the pandemic may be the clearest example of an overlapping disaster in the near term, but we'll likely see more and more overlapping disasters brought about by a changing climate.
Data Analysis
Modeling the Future of COVID-19: Q&A with RAND Experts
May 26, 2020

The phrase “flatten the curve” familiarized Americans with epidemiological models used to estimate virus transmission, cases, and potential deaths from COVID-19. But new models are needed as the country enters a different stage of the crisis.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Relaxing COVID-19 Restrictions Presents Stark Health and Economic Choices
May 18, 2020
Jeanne S. Ringel @JeanneRingel, Raffaele Vardavas, et al.

RAND's new publicly available COVID-19 interventions impact tool uses epidemiological and economic models and continually refreshed data to estimate what could happen as restrictions are eased. Our tool cannot make the choices confronting state leaders less painful, but it can provide clear evidence-based estimates of the health and economic trade-offs.
Critical Infrastructure Protection
COVID-19 Highlights the Shortcomings of America's Digital Infrastructure
May 14, 2020
James Ryseff

Much like America's aging physical infrastructure, America's digital infrastructure needs updating. To fix these urgent problems, local, state, and federal governments could turn to best practices used in the private sector to develop more reliable software.
Global Climate Change
Civilians and Military Collaborate to Address Climate Change
May 13, 2020

The Hampton Roads area in Virginia is home to more than 1.7 million people, a major port, and more military installations than anywhere else in the United States. Its rising sea levels and floods brought together civilian and military officials on a project to mitigate damage and foster resiliency.
Health Care Access
Non-Emergency Medical Transportation in the Time of COVID-19
May 5, 2020
Laura Fraade-Blanar, Christopher M. Whaley @cm_whaley

More widespread availability of rideshare for non-emergency medical transport may save lives, reserve emergency resources for those who need them, and provide safe pathways to primary care for the chronically ill. It could also save livelihoods, providing employment in a time of economic hardship.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Planning for a COVID-19 Hurricane
May 4, 2020
Aaron Clark-Ginsberg @aclarkginsberg, Gary Cecchine @GaryCecchine, et al.

What if Hurricane Katrina had hit during a pandemic? Emergency planners can prepare for this scenario by evaluating current response system capacity, evacuation and sheltering procedures, food and supply issues, and more.
Community Health and Well-Being
Reopening America—The Health and Economic Tradeoffs: Q&A with RAND Experts
May 4, 2020

Local and state officials are thinking through whether, when, and how to lift social-distancing restrictions. We asked three RAND researchers about the complex problem of reopening.

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Researcher Spotlight

Robert J. Lempert

Director, Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition

Robert Lempert is a principal researcher at the RAND Corporation and director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition. His research focuses on risk management and decisionmaking under conditions of deep uncertainty. Lempert's work aims to…

Nicholas E. Burger

Director, Washington Office

Nicholas Burger (he/him) is a senior economist at RAND and director of RAND’s Washington office. His environmental economics research focuses on domestic and international energy, climate, and resilience issues. His recent work has focused on economic approaches to valuing and prioritizing…

Does Racism Affect Patient Safety?

Health Care Affordability: State Policy Options to Control Costs

Is the Virtue in the Weapon or the Cause?

Our New CEO, Algorithmic Bias, Equity in the Workplace: RAND Weekly Recap

Three Steps to Protect Communities from Climate Change

The Policy Currents Podcast

Improving Psychological Wellbeing and Work Outcomes in the UK

Managing Escalation in Crisis and War

Getting to Know Military Caregivers and Their Needs

Planning for the Rising Costs of Dementia

Commentary from Community Health and Environmental Policy

The Downside of a Lean Electric Grid

How States and Localities Might Approach Operational Design Domains for AVs

COVID-19 Highlights Disaster Policy's Need to Prepare for Multiple, Sequential Emergencies

Stress Accumulates in Marginalized Communities, Generation After Generation

What Can the Coronavirus Teach Us About Preparing for a Heat Wave?

Modeling the Future of COVID-19: Q&A with RAND Experts

Relaxing COVID-19 Restrictions Presents Stark Health and Economic Choices

COVID-19 Highlights the Shortcomings of America's Digital Infrastructure

Civilians and Military Collaborate to Address Climate Change

Non-Emergency Medical Transportation in the Time of COVID-19

Planning for a COVID-19 Hurricane

Reopening America—The Health and Economic Tradeoffs: Q&A with RAND Experts

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