CURRENT ACTIVITIES
The Center for Health Financing, Policy and Management is engaged in a diverse range of programs and research
projects serving community, California, U.S. and international audiences.
Among current and recent projects and areas of focus are:
- Economic & Financial Status of California Emergency Departments
The Center has engaged in a number of projects pertaining to clinical and access issues surrounding hospital
emergency department (ED) operations. These projects are intended to increase understanding of EDs in the California
healthcare system and of their essential role in the community health delivery system. Our work has focused on
developing economic models and databases to understand the role of EDs in driving hospital costs, revenues, and in
overall hospital profitability, as well as to understand and illuminate comparative ED utilization patterns at the
county and local levels.
- Collaboration to Expand Community Medical Home Access and Reduce Avoidable ED Use
Guiding patients to more appropriate, better coordinated, and less costly care settings than emergency departments
(EDs) is a growing health care imperative. Increasing primary care resources can be an important strategy to reduce
rates of “avoidable” ED use and take pressure off strained community EDs, while enabling patients to establish a
well-functioning primary care medical home. The Center conducted a detailed evaluation and assessment of a
community-based intervention that produced a new, collaborative approach for a federally qualified health center
(FQHC) providing a comprehensive primary and urgent care alternative to the hospital ED.
- Implementation of Accountable Care Organizations in California
The health care affordability crisis is prompting stakeholders—employers, purchasers, physicians and hospitals—to
work in an innovative and collaborative manner across organizational silos and the health care continuum to address
gaps in care transitions and to improve health care quality while reducing costs. The Center is engaged in research
and evaluation of a ground-breaking virtually integrated health delivery model that involves three-way shared risk in
a commercial HMO population.
- The Effects of Hospital Systems on the Competitiveness and Performance of Hospital Markets in
California
The Center has developed special expertise in the structure and functioning of hospital systems in California to
better comprehend the impact of systems formation on the competitive structure of healthcare markets, as well as how
varying negotiating strategies employed by systems impact the competitiveness and financial performance of
hospitals.
- AHA/MEDPAC Data Center
- Medicare Managed Care (Jointly with RAND)
- International Training
Through its Distinguished Scholars and Distinguished Policy-maker series, the Center brings international leaders to
the USC campus to lecture, advance their research and meet our students.
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