Data analysis and policy design—not good intentions—will fix healthcare post COVID

The COVID-19 pandemic has stretched the US health care system and health care systems across the world to the breaking point and beyond. If there’s a silver lining, it may be that there is now the urgency and will among politicians and policymakers to pursue meaningful changes that could result in improved access to healthcare services that are both more affordable and higher quality. One recent example in the U.S. were the health care provisions in the Biden Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act—which were hailed as a breakthrough if for nothing else other than finally breaking the pharmaceutical industry’s stranglehold on any attempt to control prescription drug prices. But as health care policy enters what is widely seen as an inflection point, Harvard Kennedy School professors Amitabh Chandra and Soroush Saghafian say even well-intentioned quick-fix policy changes may end up doing more harm than good. Instead, policymakers need to pursue change with care, by deeply analyzing the weaknesses COVID exposed and using that data to design intelligent policy that can create transformational change. Professor Chandra is the director of Health Policy Research at the Kennedy School, and his research focuses on innovation and pricing in the biopharmaceutical industry and value and racial disparities in health care delivery. Professor Saghafian is the founder of the Public Impact Analytics Science Lab at Harvard and his work combines big data analytics, health policy, and decision science to discover new insights and provide new solutions to various existing problems. They’re here to talk through this important historic moment in health care policy, both in terms of challenges and opportunities. Soroush Saghafian uses and develops operations research and management science techniques that can have significant public benefits. He is the founder and director of the Public Impact Analytics Science Lab (PIAS-Lab) at Harvard, which is devoted to advancing and applying the science of analytics for solving societal problems that can have public impact. His current teaching focuses on Machine Learning and Big Data Analytics tools for solving societal problems. His current research focuses on the application and development of operations research methods in studying stochastic systems with specific applications in healthcare and operations management. He has been collaborating with a variety of hospitals to improve their operational efficiency, patient flow, medical decision-making, and more broadly, healthcare delivery policies. He also serves as a faculty affiliate for the Harvard Ph.D. Program in Health Policy, the Harvard Center for Health Decision Science, the Harvard Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, the Harvard Data Science Initiative, the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and is an associate faculty member at the Harvard Ariadne Labs. Amitabh Chandra is the Ethel Zimmerman Wiener Professor of Public Policy and Director of Health Policy Research at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and the Henry and Allison McCance Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School where he directs the joint MS/MBA program in the life-sciences. His research focuses on innovation and pricing in the biopharmaceutical industry, value in health care, medical malpractice, and racial disparities in healthcare. Professor Chandra is a member of the Congressional Budget Office's Panel of Health Advisors, a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and the Chair Editor of the Review of Economics and Statistics. Professor Chandra is also an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Social Insurance. In 2012, he was awarded the American Society of Health Economists (ASHE) medal, which is awarded biennially to the economist aged 40 or under who has made the most significant contributions to the field of health economics. Ralph Ranalli of the HKS Office of Public Affairs and Communications is the host, producer, and editor of HKS PolicyCast. A former journalist, public television producer, and entrepreneur, he holds an A.B. in Political Science from UCLA and an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University. The co-producer of PolicyCast is Susan Hughes. Design and graphics support is provided by Lydia Rosenberg, Delane Meadows and the OCPA Design Team. Social media promotion and support is provided by Natalie Montaner and the OCPA Digital Team.