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oppforhealthlab.bsky.social
Opportunity for Health
@oppforhealthlab.bsky.social
We study how economic opportunity affects health, and test interventions and policies that can boost opportunity and improve health for all Americans.

opportunityforhealth.org
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The Opportunity for Health Lab is thrilled to be partnering with The Skills Initiative on WORKS - a new study exploring the powerful connection between economic opportunity and health.

#OpportunityForHealth #SkillsInitiative #ResearchCollaboration
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
1/ New paper w/ @rourkeobrien.bsky.social, @clowenstein.bsky.social, and Elizabeth Bair showing how the Voting Rights Act had starkly different effects on #mortality by race and age -- and the potential importance of #status #threat in explaining these findings.

www.nber.org/papers/w34421
November 3, 2025 at 3:23 PM
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Surveying the evidence on intergenerational mobility studies that use alternative measures with a focus on health, consumption and life satisfaction, from Jonathan Davis, Nathan Deutscher, and @bhashmazumder.bsky.social www.nber.org/papers/w34407
October 31, 2025 at 3:02 PM
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Check out this special RESEARCH edition of the
PENN POPULATION STUDIES NEWSLETTER

featuring new pubs by 30+ @pennaging.bsky.social & @pennpsc.bsky.social researchers, including

@oppforhealthlab.bsky.social, @pfomby.bsky.social, & @drdmgriffith.bsky.social

READ IT HERE:
bit.ly/3Wg0QeL
October 30, 2025 at 3:56 PM
It was exciting to see OfH Lab members sharing their work at this week’s CHIBE Retreat! @pennchibe.bsky.social

Our PM Hilu presented qualitative findings from the IGNITE study, and pre-doc Ritikaa presented on “Understanding the recent decline in US life expectancy” during the poster session. 👏🏼
October 15, 2025 at 5:36 PM
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Can economic opportunity lower mortality? Exploiting the fracking boom: job growth lowered medically treatable deaths (e.g. cardiovascular), likely via increased insurance coverage, but had no effect on external causes such as Deaths of Despair. www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...
September 12, 2025 at 5:04 PM
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1/ Opportunity for Health (@oppforhealthlab.bsky.social) is 5 years old today!

I can't think of a better way to kick off our anniversary than embarking on this multi-year study on #job #reskilling and #health with a fantastic Philly based partner, The Skills Initiative.
The Opportunity for Health Lab is thrilled to be partnering with The Skills Initiative on WORKS - a new study exploring the powerful connection between economic opportunity and health.

#OpportunityForHealth #SkillsInitiative #ResearchCollaboration
September 2, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
The Opportunity for Health Lab is thrilled to be partnering with The Skills Initiative on WORKS - a new study exploring the powerful connection between economic opportunity and health.

#OpportunityForHealth #SkillsInitiative #ResearchCollaboration
August 22, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
In @nejm.org, Atheendar Venkataramani (@pennmehp.bsky.social) & co discuss how public policies, by way of the social narratives they reinforce, can affect health by mechanisms that are independent of any effects on resources & opportunities @oppforhealthlab.bsky.social www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/...
August 27, 2025 at 7:05 PM
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🚨 New paper 🚨

In the latter half of the 20th c, states in the US passed massive suites of “tough-on-crime” sentencing policies.

In this paper, we investigated how (& why) these policies shaped pop health, esp racialized patterns of birth outcomes in the US.

track.smtpsendmail.com/9032119/c?p=...
Heterogeneous and racialized impacts of state incarceration policies on birth outcomes in the United States
Abstract. While state incarceration policies have received much attention in research on the causes of mass incarceration in the United States, their roles
track.smtpsendmail.com
August 22, 2025 at 2:41 PM
The Opportunity for Health Lab is thrilled to be partnering with The Skills Initiative on WORKS - a new study exploring the powerful connection between economic opportunity and health.

#OpportunityForHealth #SkillsInitiative #ResearchCollaboration
August 22, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
#Policies can affect our #health by shaping and transmitting social narratives and affect people's #beliefs about their current and future status -- independent of any impacts they have on people's material circumstances.

See our new #paper in @nejm.org: www.nejm.org/doi/full/10....
Public Policies, Social Narratives, and Population Health | NEJM
Public policies, by way of the social narratives they reinforce, can affect health by mechanisms that are independent of any effects on resources and opportunities.
www.nejm.org
July 31, 2025 at 12:53 PM
#Policies can affect our #health by shaping and transmitting social narratives and affect people's #beliefs about their current and future status -- independent of any impacts they have on people's material circumstances.

See our new #paper in @nejm.org: www.nejm.org/doi/full/10....
Public Policies, Social Narratives, and Population Health | NEJM
Public policies, by way of the social narratives they reinforce, can affect health by mechanisms that are independent of any effects on resources and opportunities.
www.nejm.org
July 31, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
In @nejm.org, LDI Fellow Atheendar Venkataramani and colleagues explore how the discussion surrounding public policies—regardless of whether the policy is enacted or not—impacts population health, particularly for marginalized groups. Learn more:
ldi.upenn.edu/our-work/res...
Policy Talk Isn’t Cheap; It Can Affect Your Health
A new NEJM piece written by Atheendar Venkataramani explores how public discussion of policies can impact population health, particularly for marginalized groups.
ldi.upenn.edu
July 29, 2025 at 5:45 PM
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Constructing new population-level linked administrative data to study households' access to credit in the US, from Trevor J. Bakker, Stefanie DeLuca, Eric A. English, James S. Fogel, Nathaniel Hendren, and Daniel Herbst https://www.nber.org/papers/w34053
July 25, 2025 at 5:00 PM
New op-ed in @crainsnewyork.bsky.social!

@mihirkakara.bsky.social examines NY’s proposal to end subminimum wages for disabled workers under Section 14(c) - a policy that still allows people with disabilities to be paid less than minimum wage.

Read here: www.crainsnewyork.com/op-ed/op-ed-...
Op-ed: Ending subminimum wage for disabled workers
State lawmakers are pushing to eliminate a controversial 86-year-old policy that allows certain employers to pay people with disabilities less than the federal minimum wage.
www.crainsnewyork.com
July 23, 2025 at 2:58 PM
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Providing the first causal evidence on how occupational wage inequality undermines the labor movement, using three complementary research designs, from Barbara Biasi, Zoë B. Cullen, Julia H. Gilman, and Nina Roussille https://www.nber.org/papers/w33978
July 6, 2025 at 4:00 PM
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Today at Noon EST (5pm BST) with PARC Research Associate Julia Lynch @jlynch13.bsky.social
Join LSE Health for "Unhealthy Divides? Perspectives on Socioeconomic Inequalities in Health":
Register: bit.ly/4jWYavW
An interdisciplinary panel moderated by @emiliecourtin.bsky.social
July 7, 2025 at 3:48 PM
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CUNY's ACE program raised BA completion. An analysis finds ACE yields $48K in net social benefits per participant—rising to $130K when intergenerational benefits are included, from Scott-Clayton, Garfinkel, Ananat, Collyer, Hartley, Koutavas, Wang, and Wimer https://www.nber.org/papers/w33956
July 3, 2025 at 3:00 PM
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New working paper alert! Posted at @equitablegrowth.bsky.social, it investigates the economic geography of social transfer programs and financial income--with implications for the Medicaid and SNAP cuts proposed in the reconciliation bill 👀

equitablegrowth.org/working-pape...
Financial and Transfer Income as Components of the Regional Economic Base
Government transfers and financial income form a major component of the basic sector in the United States.
equitablegrowth.org
June 25, 2025 at 5:07 PM
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IAPHS Conference Registration is now open!

Visit iaphs.org/conference/r... to learn more
June 9, 2025 at 6:44 PM
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SER Café☕︎

Join us for an online conversation with author @robertmanduca.bsky.social on his article, “Should social insurance programs count as wealth? Augmented wealth in research and policy.”

📅Friday, June 27th, 8AM PDT / 11AM EDT / 5PM CET via Zoom.

Register here: umich.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Socio-Economic Review Cafe: Reflection on Wealth Studies (June. 27). After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.
Featuring a conversation with SER authors Robert Manduca (University of Michigan). Join us for a discussion of comparative-historical reflections on the measurement and common practices in wealth stu...
umich.zoom.us
June 14, 2025 at 9:10 AM
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Not Even Wealth is Saving Americans from Dying at Rates Seen among Some of the Poorest Europeans

in NBC News
by Atheendar Venkataramani (PARC Research Associate)

www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...
Not even wealth is saving Americans from dying at rates seen among some of the poorest Europeans
Experts said a new study of wealth and mortality in middle-aged and older adults points to deep-rooted health risks in the U.S.
www.nbcnews.com
June 9, 2025 at 12:44 PM
How can we as researchers do a better job of making our work accessible and engaging to the public?

Dr. Atheendar Venkataramani was recently interviewed by @ryansuk.bsky.social to discuss the importance of public engagement by scientists. Check out the full interview here 👇🏽
Public-Facing Communications, Part 1: Public Engagement in Science is Essential – Not Optional – IAPHS – Interdisciplinary Association for Population Health Science
iaphs.org
May 30, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Reposted by Opportunity for Health
For 40 years, Americans have lived shorter lives than people in other rich countries.

For 10 years, that's been rapidly getting worse.

New research: in 2022-2023, there were 1.5 million "missing Americans," who died--but wouldn't have, if America didn't have such uniquely high death rates.
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.
jamanetwork.com
May 29, 2025 at 7:58 PM
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ICYMI: The second keynote of @pennchibe.bsky.social’s Spring Research Seminar Series, the event featuring Harvard Professor Raj Chetty and co-hosted by @katymilkman.bsky.social & Atheendar Venkataramani is now available on our YouTube channel! Watch it here: bit.ly/4kgDjnE
BCFG/CHIBE Research Seminar Series Keynote Event feat. Raj Chetty
BCFG co-hosted the second Spring keynote of a Zoom-based Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics (CHIBE) Research Seminar Series on behavioral science and health. The keynote event featured Harvard Economics Professor Raj Chetty and was facilitated by BCFG's Co-Directors Katy Milkman and Angela Duckworth, as well as Penn Medical Ethics and Health Policy Professor Atheendar Venkataramani.
bit.ly
May 29, 2025 at 1:38 PM