Publications

October 1, 2022 | Publication

Nudging the Nudger: A Field Experiment on the Effect of Performance Feedback to Service Agents on Increasing Organ Donor Registrations

We conducted a randomized controlled trial involving nearly 700 customer-service representatives (CSRs) in a Canadian government service agency to study whether providing CSRs with performance feedback with or without peer comparison affected their subsequent organ donor registration rates. Despite having no tie to remuneration or promotion, the provision of individual performance feedback three times over one year resulted in a 25% increase in daily signups, compared to otherwise similar encouragement and reminders.
August 25, 2022 | Publication

Customized Care for Complex Conditions in Medicare Advantage

Medicare beneficiaries frequently select suboptimal Medicare Advantage plan products or elect traditional fee-for-service Medicare due to choice paralysis, cognitive impairments, and consumer health insurance illiteracy. Medicare Advantage Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans (C-SNPs) offer an opportunity to tie disease to both plan design and marketing, simplifying consumer choice architecture.
August 13, 2022 | Publication

Caregiving-Related Work Productivity Loss Among Employed Family and Other Unpaid Caregivers of Older Adults

Although nearly half of all family and unpaid caregivers to older adults work, little is known about short-term work impacts of caregiving using measures encompassing both missed work time and reduced productivity while physically at work. We quantify the prevalence, costs, and correlates of caregiving-related work productivity loss.
July 22, 2022 | Publication

Staffing Patterns in US Nursing Homes During COVID-19 Outbreaks

In this cohort study of nursing homes experiencing severe COVID-19 outbreaks, facilities experienced considerable staffing challenges during and after outbreaks. These results suggest the need for policy action to ensure facilities’ abilities to maintain adequate staffing levels during and after infectious disease outbreaks.
June 1, 2022 | Publication

Medicaid Managed Care: Access to Primary Care Providers Who Prescribe Buprenorphine

Medicaid managed care insurers play a crucial role in facilitating access to buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder. Using a novel set of provider directory and prescription claims data, we examined variation in access to in-network buprenorphine-prescribing primary care providers among Medicaid managed care enrollees.