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[Wikipedia entry] =The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research= The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research is one of the nation's leading health policy research centers and the premier source of health policy information for California. Established in 1994, the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research is a research center based within the UCLA School of Public Health. The Center conducts the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) which collects a wide range of health data on up to 50,000 or more Californians on a regular basis. The data are disseminated for free through the Center's website and through Web tools such as AskCHIS and AskCHIS Neighborhood Edition, which allow users to access health statistics by state, regional, county, ZIP code, city and legislative district.

The Center, in collaboration with the University of California Center for Labor Research and Education, also conducts the California Simulation of Insurance Markets (CalSIM), which provides modeled estimates on health care reform and other topics to policymakers and others.

The Center's director is Gerald F. Kominski, PhD. The Center has numerous faculty and staff that research a range of heath policy issues, including health insurance, access to care, health care economics, racial and social health disparities, and chronic diseases. The Center publishes dozens of studies each year as policy briefs, reports, and peer-reviewed journal articles. In addition, Center research and data are regularly used in numerous other publications.

The Center's Health DATA Program trains representatives of organizations on how to use health data through community workshops, train-the-trainer courses, and online and technical workshops.

Details
Established: 1994

Director: Gerald F. Kominski

Location: 10960 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 1550 Los Angeles, Calif. 90024

Website: http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/

Programs
The Center provides topic-specific expertise through six independent research programs :

CHIS The California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) is the nation’s largest state health survey. CHIS is a telephone survey that asks questions on a wide range of health topics from diabetes to immigrant health and health insurance. CHIS is conducted on a continuous basis allowing it to provide a detailed picture of the health and health care needs of California’s large and diverse population. A full data cycle takes two years to complete, with more than 40,000 Californians surveyed across all 58 counties in California. CHIS data are used by legislators, policy makers, local health departments, state agencies, community organizations, advocacy groups, foundations, researchers, and many others to advance public health in California. Health DATA

The Health DATA (Data. Advocacy. Training. Assistance.) Program exists to make data easy and understandable to a wide range of health advocates through trainings, workshops and technical assistance. The program participants reflect a broad range of health interests and represent a diversity of public health and advocacy professionals and community members, including executive directors, program managers, health educators, development staff, promatoras and volunteers. Through in-person and on-line trainings, their goal is to improve the capacity of health experts and advocates to find, understand and present credible data in their programmatic and policy development work. The Health DATA program has also partnered with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control on programs to discourage asthma and improve healthy behaviors, among other initiatives.

Health Economics and Evaluation Research

The Health Economics and Evaluation Research (HEER) Program (http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/programs/health-economics/ ) examines the economic and financial impacts of national, state, and local-level health care interventions. The HEER Program aims to increase understanding of the costs and benefits of health care interventions, as well as suggest ways to make programs and policies more effective. HEER staff have lent their expertise to a broad range of organizations and initiatives, including the California Department of Health Care Services, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the California Health Benefits Review Program, the California Primary Care Association, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, as well as the state’s health benefit exchange – Covered California. Recent projects conducted by HEER include use of the California Simulation of Insurance Markets (Cal SIM) model to estimate eligibility and sign up for benefits under the Affordable Care Act, evaluation of California’s Low-Income Health Program (LIHP), and evaluation of the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program.

Health Insurance

The Center's Health Insurance Studies Program (http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/programs/health-insurance/) examines the current state of local, state and national health insurance policies, coverage, costs and efficacy. Specifically, the Program tracks health insurance coverage nationwide and in California, and studies what drives changes in coverage. Program staff produce the biennial report The State of Health Insurance in California (SHIC) (http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/programs/health-insurance/), a comprehensive examination of health insurance coverage in the state, with particular attention to health and health care disparities resulting from lack of insurance. Program staff also publish in-depth research on topics ranging from the effects of discontinuous coverage on access to care to the decline of job-based insurance. The Program provides statistical analyses of health insurance topics and responds to the needs of advocates, the research community and the media upon request, as well as to legislators and their staff. Additional projects conducted by the program includes the Evaluation of 12-Month Continuous Eligibility in Medicaid and Discontinuous Public Health Insurance and Its Effects on Access to Physician Services.

Chronic Disease Chronic diseases—such as diabetes, cancer, asthma and heart disease—are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. The Center’s Chronic Disease Program (http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/programs/chronic-disease/) produces data and research on chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes as well as a range of related health promotion issues, including the social and environmental factors that contribute to obesity, lack of physical activity and poor diet. Program staff conduct research on factors that both promote healthy living (more physical activity and better diet) and prevent the development or exacerbation of chronic diseases. Staff also focus on appropriateness and quality of care for chronic conditions. Program experts have been asked to give testimony before California’s legislature, consumer and civic groups and elsewhere on the effects of obesity, diabetes, asthma and other chronic conditions and to recommend policy options to combat those effects.

Health Disparities The Center's Health Disparities Program (http://healthpolicy.ucla.edu/programs/health-disparities/) is a resource for policymakers, planners, advocates, researchers and the media in understanding the unique health concerns of populations challenged by gaps in health and health care quality along racial, ethnic, or socio-economic lines. The Program is particularly noted for its in-depth analysis, research, and technical assistance on the health issues and concerns of Elder health, Immigrants , and Sexual minorities. In addition, the Program conducts specific research, often in collaboration with other programs within the Center, on women's health, children’s health, low-income groups, urban and rural populations, as well as persons with disabilities. The Health Disparities Program is also noted for its contribution to specific policy initiatives such as the Elder Economic Security Standard Index for California, a tool that measures the actual cost of basic necessities for older adults in each of California's 58 counties.

Leadership
Gerald F. Kominski Director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research Professor of health policy and management, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.

Steven P. Wallace Associate Director, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research Professor, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health Chair of the Department of Community Health Sciences and director of the Coordinating Center for the NIH/NIA Resource Centers on Minority Aging Research.

Ninez A. Ponce Associate Director, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research Principal Investigator, California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) Professor, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

David Grant Director, California Health Interview Survey (CHIS)