We focus on a number of topic areas identified by state health policy leaders as important to population health.
Keep up with news and updates from the Milbank Memorial Fund. Get the latest from thought leaders, including Christopher F. Koller, president of the Fund.
We publish The Milbank Quarterly, as well as reports, issues briefs, and case studies on topics important to population health.
The Center for Evidence-based Policy at Oregon Health & Science University is a national leader in evidence-based decision making and policy design.
The Milbank Memorial Fund is an endowed operating foundation that publishes The Milbank Quarterly, commissions projects, and convenes state health policy decision makers on issues they identify as important to population health.
Apr 25, 2016 | Christopher F. Koller, President
My e-mail inbox is full of innovations—solicitations for health care meetings, most offering “unique opportunities” to hear from “national leaders,” all of whom are busy innovating. Much of the conference fodder focuses on payment reform. Read more
Mar 23, 2016 | Christopher F. Koller, President
We are not the first country to wrestle with the effects of fee-for-service medicine, it seems. I recently picked up the book, The Forging of a Rebel, an autobiography of Spanish Civil War veteran Arturo Barea—and encountered the durable power of economic incentives in medical care. Read more
Feb 16, 2016 | Christopher F. Koller, President
Dear Health Care Payers: We gathered 25 of you—insurance company staff, Medicaid officials, and Medicare staff—earlier this month to compare notes on your work with Medicare’s Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative, a multi-payer initiative that fosters collaboration between public and private health care payers in seven markets to strengthen primary care. It is apparent that this sort … Read more
Jan 20, 2016 | Christopher F. Koller, President
The hip-hop Broadway musical about Alexander Hamilton’s life may be the hottest ticket in town, but Hamilton’s well-known advocacy for a strong national government is not getting much love on the campaign trail or in political discourse. Read more
Dec 17, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
At the end of 2015, it is worth taking a look at some of the progress that has been made this year advancing population health in this country. A little bit of love is called for: advocacy to improve the health of large numbers of people can be a lonely trail. It is far easier to arouse public sympathies for health care—for named victims, heroic healers, and miracle therapies. Health improvement … Read more
Nov 17, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
Few policies intended to help people live longer are more effective than those targeting teen pregnancy rates. Yet even when those policies work, they are fraught with controversy and conflict. A look at what’s currently going on in Colorado demonstrates some of the challenges in addressing the social determinants of health. The evidence regarding factors that contribute to premature death is … Read more
Oct 19, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
When I regulated commercial health insurance in Rhode Island, I would point out that the politically conservative notion of a free market for health insurance depends on the liberal principle of collectivism. Health insurance only works if enough people come together so the many who are healthy can pay for the few who are sick—and if payments from insurers actually help improve the … Read more
Sep 21, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
Bipartisanship in health policy is hard to find. Pick your topic—Medicaid expansion, Medicare reform, or health insurance exchanges—and voices are shrill, slogans are wielded like swords, and opinions ossified. Powered by easy ideologies and campaign cash, the outcomes of partisanship are misunderstandings, distrust, and a lack of progress on important issues. The Milbank Memorial Fund, in … Read more
Aug 17, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
You would think a billion-dollar-a-year organization that pays its chief 20% of the market rate and turns that role over every two years—as is the case with state Medicaid programs—might start to consider the importance of leadership. Leadership also seems important for a public health agency charged with guarding the safety of food, water, and patient care, or a child welfare or human … Read more
Jul 21, 2015 | Christopher F. Koller, President
“Secret Health-Law Huddle.” The headline made me shudder. It appeared in a national newspaper, describing a meeting hosted by the Milbank Memorial Fund. “Secret” implied scandal where there was none. That the meeting happened was no secret. The proceedings were, however, confidential. Yes, we had a meeting. No, we weren’t going to talk about what was said. There is a world of nuance … Read more
by Christopher Koller | President, Milbank Memorial Fund
For more blog posts by Milbank staff and guest authors, read: The Milbank Blog
The Milbank Memorial Fund is an endowed operating foundation that works to improve the health of populations by connecting leaders and decision makers with the best available evidence and experience.
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