Health Economics and Health Policy

The Health Economics and Health Policy research integrates innovative economic and policy analysis to address key health challenges spanning reproductive health, HIV prevention and the prevention of tobacco, nicotine, cannabis and other substances. Projects in reproductive health focus on enhancing access to pre-exposure prophylaxis and contraceptive services for young women through strategies like loyalty programs and discrete choice experiments, particularly in low-resource settings such as Tanzania. Research on tobacco and cannabis use investigates the broader economic, health and environmental consequences, including the costs of youth substance use on California’s school system and the environmental toxicity of tobacco and cannabis product waste. By combining behavioral economics, impact evaluations and environmental assessments, these research programs provide critical evidence to support effective healthcare delivery models and public health policies.

Projects

Cannabis Vaping and the Risk of Respiratory Symptoms for U.S. Youth and Young Adults 

This study assesses the temporal relationship between cannabis vaping and respiratory symptoms in adolescents and young adults, aiming to inform policies to prevent cannabis use and reduce associated respiratory health issues. 

Environmental Toxicity of Electronic Cigarette and Heated Tobacco Product Components and Waste

This research investigates the types and distributions of waste from electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and heated tobacco products (HTP) in California’s public spaces, along with the acute and chronic toxicity of this waste in aquatic environments.  

Impact of Tobacco Use, Secondhand Tobacco Exposure, and Cannabis Use on School System Costs 

This project estimates California’s annual school funding losses due to absenteeism from youth use of e-cigarettes, combustible tobacco, and cannabis, as well as secondhand tobacco exposure in children’s homes. It also examines disparities in these losses by socioeconomic and geographic factors. 

Predicting and Characterizing “Youth-Friendliness” in Tanzanian Drug Shops Using Natural Language and Audio Processing Methods 

This project analyzes audio recordings from mystery client visits to assess the “youth-friendliness” of Tanzanian drug shops, employing machine learning to identify factors that improve service quality for AGYW. 

Supporting Young Women's Reproductive Health by Harnessing Prosociality Among Drug Shopkeepers 

This study tests strategies to motivate Tanzanian drug shopkeepers to sustain services for AGYW’s reproductive health needs, enhancing an existing loyalty program to promote sustainable, cost-effective scaling. 

Understanding the Preferences of Pharmacy Shopkeepers in Dispensing Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis: A Discrete Choice Experiment 

This project uses a discrete choice experiment to understand Tanzanian pharmacy shopkeepers' preferences for dispensing PrEP, complemented by mystery client visits to evaluate biases in service provision.