The Fund supports networks of state health policy decision makers to help identify, inspire, and inform policy leaders.
The Milbank Memorial Fund supports two state leadership programs for legislative and executive branch state government officials committed to improving population health.
The Fund identifies and shares policy ideas and analysis to advance state health leadership, strong primary care, and sustainable health care costs.
Keep up with news and updates from the Milbank Memorial Fund. And read the latest blogs from our thought leaders, including Fund President Christopher F. Koller.
The Fund publishes The Milbank Quarterly, as well as reports, issues briefs, and case studies on topics important to health policy leaders.
The Milbank Memorial Fund is is a foundation that works to improve population health and health equity.
Population Health Public Health
November 2025 Rebekah H. Nagler, Erika Franklin Fowler, Emily K. Vraga, Alexander J. Rothman, Sarah E. Gollust,
US adults’ awareness of actions threatening public health and science declined between March and September 2025, according to a new survey. More
Report Health Care Affordability
November 2025 Jessica Mar, Caitlin Otter, Michael Bailit,
Over the last decade, high and rising health care costs have squeezed patients’ wallets, strained local economies, and consumed a growing share of state budgets. In response, states have increasingly recognized the urgency of addressing unsustainable health care cost growth through innovative cost containment strategies More
November 2025 Eva H. Allen, Jennifer M. Haley,
In 2024, there were 18.7 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, with Black and Native women at significantly higher risk of maternal mortality. Medicaid is at the forefront of addressing the US maternal health crisis given that it covers 4 in 10 births nationwide, nearly two-thirds of births to Black women, and more than one-quarter of births to Native women. More
Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Policy
November 2025 Paul T. Kim,
As feared at the start of the second Trump Administration, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proven a willing good soldier in fulfilling the… More
October 2025 Joshua M. Sharfstein,
If repetition is the mother of learning, then I am learning that the second Trump administration likes to use the term “gold standard science.” It is… More
Health Care Practice / Quality Population Health
October 2025 Katherine A. Kennedy, Cyrus Kosar, Madison S. Williams, Kali S. Thomas,
Context: Funded partially by the Older Americans Act, state Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs (LTCOPs) provide a critical role in serving as… More
Health Care Practice / Quality Opioid Use Disorder
October 2025 STEPHAN R. LINDNER, JENNIFER HALL, BRYNNA MANIBUSAN, JORDAN BYERS, KYLE HART, ANDREA BARON, Dennis McCarty, K. John McConnell, Deborah J. Cohen,
Starting in 2015, states could apply for section 1115 substance use disorder (SUD) waivers to strengthen their continuum of care for treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD). Prior research found substantial variation in changes to medication use for OUD associated with waiver implementation. The objective of this study was to identify strategies that states undertook as part of their waivers that were associated with increases in methadone and buprenorphine treatment in eight waiver states (Indiana, Louisiana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia). More
Health Equity Reproductive Health
October 2025 Paula M. Lantz,
Despite the dynamic and multidimensional nature of the legal landscape for abortion, the negative effects of restrictive state abortion policies are beginning to emerge. More
Health Care Affordability
October 2025 Erin Taylor, Matthew Reynolds,
This post describes ways states can safeguard and promote health equity alongside their efforts to make health care more affordable, particularly for those who bear the greatest burden of high and rising health care costs. The post identifies four overarching approaches states can take. More
State Health Policy Leadership
October 2025 Christopher F. Koller,
in a new View from Here, Milbank Memorial Fund President Christopher Koller discussed the breakdown in the “rules of the road” that has led to declining vaccination rates among children. More
