Courtney Van Houtven
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chvanhoutven.bsky.social
Courtney Van Houtven
@chvanhoutven.bsky.social
Health economist, health services and health policy researcher, long-term care, family caregiving. Department of Population Health Sciences Duke University and Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy
Nice coverage of some of the caregiver research Megan Shepherd-Banigan and I are involved in. The Duke Daily. medschool.duke.edu/news/reimagi...
Reimagining Support for Family Caregivers and Their Loved Ones
Family caregivers face an immense burden. Duke population health researchers are gathering evidence to show what type of care leads to the best physical and mental health for the care recipients, and ...
medschool.duke.edu
September 4, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Yellen not at all pulling her punches in this op-ed for the FT www.ft.com/content/d2ea...
August 27, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Why do the jobs numbers get revised?

our markets and policymakers want data NOW but employer data dribbles in over months

1st estimate is based on the 75% of employers who respond promptly

Updates occur as more data rolls in: 95% response rate by final revision 1/N

www.bls.gov/opub/btn/vol...
August 2, 2025 at 10:08 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
This is the Trump health care plan we waited an infinite "two weeks" for.

It'll increase the number of uninsured people in this country by about 50% over the next decade.
The Republican megabill has many parts and was never framed for the public as a health care bill. But, it is the biggest cutback in federal support for health coverage ever.
July 3, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
The parl struck ACA policies that would had funded CSRs and withdrawn subsidy eligibility from certain immigrant populations.

She did *not* appear to strike the pre-enrollment verification policy, which is maybe the most damaging ACA policy in the bill, from an enrollment standpoint.
June 26, 2025 at 1:12 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Super interesting column @equitablegrowth.bsky.social by Alex Bell on how identification by anti-instruments reveals attribute tradeoffs, applied to job quality.

Got to see him present it @upjohninstitute.bsky.social recently. New & interesting.
#EconSky
equitablegrowth.org/the-hidden-t...
The hidden trade-offs of nonwage job amenities for U.S. workers
Research shows that “amenity trade-offs” can account for as much as two-thirds of the gender pay gap.
equitablegrowth.org
June 10, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
New research in Health Economics co-authored by DUPRI scholar @chvanhoutven.bsky.social looks at the effect of care providers for home-based care outcomes.
Health Economics (Early View): As the need for long-term care grows, researchers like Norma Coe are examining outcomes of home-based care, and if the specific provider of care makes a difference in the health of the recipient. Read more here. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Home‐Based Care Outcomes: Does the Care Provider Matter?
Long-term services in the home are predominately provided by family or friends, with a growing proportion of individuals receiving formal care, or paid care by a professional, or a combination of bot...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
June 3, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Great upcoming (and all too timely, given current events) panel on Medicaid with authors from @jhppl.bsky.social special issue
June 3, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Join us virtually June 10th to discuss health priorities for adults with IDD! Panel speakers include Talley Wells, @chvanhoutven.bsky.social Kenton Johnston, Harold Pollack, Sarah Triano with remarks from the Honorable Zack Hawkins, NC General Assembly.
healthpolicy.duke.edu/events/advan...
Advancing Health Priorities that Matter to the IDD Community: Learnings and Future Directions
Days in the community or “home time” is considered a patient-centered outcome measure reflecting clinical events impacting quality of life and patient preferences. However, it is also important to con...
healthpolicy.duke.edu
May 28, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
New study with @jacob-bor.bsky.social @wrigleyfield.bsky.social & colleagues estimates that US saw 705,331 excess deaths in 2023—a number in line w/ rising pre-pandemic trend. Over 1.5 million deaths could’ve been averted in 2022–23 if US mortality matched peer nations. 🧵 (1/5)

tinyurl.com/569pr9ty
Excess US Deaths Before, During, and After the COVID-19 Pandemic
This cohort study examines trends in excess deaths in the US before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
tinyurl.com
May 27, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
The editorial boards of seven leading health econ journals are taking a stand today against political influence and ideological attacks on peer review and academia. No matter what you study we want to see your scholarship and will NEVER collaborate with suppression. Please repost.
The Editorial Boards of leading health economics journals are issuing a Joint Statement of Principles on Editorial Independence. In these troubled times some scholars worry their work might suffer ideological attack. We reaffirm our commitment to unfettered scholarship. Please repost.
May 21, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Have any researchers outside GAO studied the phase out of subminimum wages for Americans with disabilities?
#EconSky
www.gao.gov/products/gao...
Subminimum Wage Program: Employment Outcomes and Views of Former Workers in Two States
We also published an " Easy Read" version of this report. Easy Read is a way of making written information easier to understand. We published the Easy...
www.gao.gov
May 19, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
A recent study found that, since 2010, Medicaid expansion has reduced the mortality of the low-income adult population by 2.5%. In other words, Medicaid expansion saved more than 27,000 lives.
www.nber.org/papers/w3371...
Saved by Medicaid: New Evidence on Health Insurance and Mortality from the Universe of Low-Income Adults
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
www.nber.org
May 19, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
📣📣

We are looking for an Assistant Professor (tenure track) in the Department of Global and Public Health @mcgillspgh.bsky.social @healthsciences.mcgill.ca!

mcgill.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/mcgill...
April 28, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Anyone submitted an appeal of termination of a diversity supplement? I’d love to see an example. Ewf@umn.edu if you’re up for sharing
April 30, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
There are few things as cost effective as Narcan, especially in a country where (entirely preventable) opioid overdoses have been a leading cause of death for years. For every 6 kits distributed 1 OD is prevented. The $56M in this grant trained >66K people and distributed >282,500 kits in 2024 alone
RFK Jr. to End 'Godsend' Narcan Program That Helped Reduce Overdose Deaths Despite His Past Heroin Addiction
Despite overcoming heroin addiction himself, RFK Jr. is backing plans to cut a critical Narcan program that helped reduce overdose deaths.
www.latintimes.com
April 30, 2025 at 12:22 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
How many NIH supported "life-changing" studies have been or will be terminated?
This one on the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study, by @dhruvkhullar.bsky.social @newyorker.com
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
A Life-Changing Scientific Study Ended by the Trump Administration
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., declared chronic diseases an “existential threat.” Then his agency terminated one of the world’s longest-running diabetes trials.
www.newyorker.com
April 29, 2025 at 12:53 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Congratulations to Stefanie Stantcheva (@s-stantcheva.bsky.social) of @harvard.edu, winner of the 2025 John Bates Clark Medal! #econsky www.aeaweb.org/about-aea/ho...
Stefanie Stantcheva, Clark Medalist 2025
www.aeaweb.org
April 22, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
This is incredibly cool: if you search for a condition that’s affected your family, the site returns stats on how much NIH has done for that disease, *and* a contact form for reaching out to tell your Members of Congress why you want to see them defend NIH.

Pass it on!
April 21, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
“Older Black Americans are twice as likely as white patients to develop [dementia]. Just as it is not illegal to research breast cancer in women, Mezuk said, it should not be illegal to research dementia in Black and lower-income white Americans.”

www.michigandaily.com/news/researc...
NIH terminates $13 million grant on dementia
A $12.9 million grant for a study on dementia risks among at-risk U.S. populations was terminated by the National Institutes of Health.
www.michigandaily.com
April 22, 2025 at 12:15 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
The number of international students hit by the Trump administration's visa actions is likely much larger than reported. For example, Northwest Missouri State has 43 revocations--twice as many as the University of Michigan. The regional public angle here deserves more attention.
Five Key Takeaways From Tracking Student Visa Revocations
More than 1,500 students from nearly 250 colleges have had their visas revoked, but who they are—and why they’ve been targeted—is still largely unknown.
www.insidehighered.com
April 21, 2025 at 9:36 AM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
On Monday the Supreme Court hears a case that could strike down the ACA mandate that insurers cover preventive services at no cost to patients.

We found that ~40 million people with private insurance use these free services, including half of enrolled women.

JAMA Health Forum:
ja.ma/3GcUZC6

🩺📊
Use of No-Cost Preventive Services Jeopardized by Kennedy v Braidwood
This cross-sectional study analyzes the use of 10 no-cost preventive services by individuals with employer-sponsored health insurance, which may be threatened by the upcoming Kennedy v Braidwood Supre...
ja.ma
April 17, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
"Eliminate the Head Start program."

- Trump campaign's outsourced policy arm #Project2025 Playbook, on page 482
www.project2025.org/playbook/
Playbook | Project 2025
The fourth pillar of Project 2025 is our 180-day Transition Playbook and includes a comprehensive, concrete transition plan for each federal agency. Only through the implementation of specific action ...
www.project2025.org
July 13, 2024 at 7:31 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Preprint I led is out @medrxivpreprint.bsky.social
We examined how healthcare discrimination is associated with long-term doctor visit patterns among adults aged 50+. Discrimination may indicate poor quality of care and may lead to more frequent doctor visits.

www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...
Impact of Discrimination in Healthcare on Patterns of Doctor Visits Over Time
Importance: Discrimination in healthcare disrupts trust and can negatively influence patients. However, the impact of experiencing discrimination on long–term patterns of healthcare utilization is unk...
www.medrxiv.org
April 16, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Reposted by Courtney Van Houtven
Our research shows that ending birthright citizenship "would cause serious harm…to the entire United States."

It is my honor to join with 95 other social scientists, all of us specialists in US immigration, in signing this new Amicus Curiae brief.

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
April 15, 2025 at 1:33 PM