health policy

News

Paula Lantz receives IAPHS J. Michael McGinnis Leadership Excellence Award

Jun 11, 2026

Epidemiologist and social demographer Paula Lantz has been named the recipient of the J. Michael McGinnis Leadership Excellence Award from the Interdisciplinary Association for Population Health Science.

Publication

Michigan’s Medicaid expansion improved both health and finances

Jun 10, 2026

U-M report shows individuals, hospitals and primary care clinics all experienced positive impacts, but raises concerns about cost-sharing provisions that all states must soon enact.

News

Peterson and Pawar win 2026 Ali Family Memorial Writing Prize

Jun 4, 2026

Sarah Peterson (MPP/MBA ‘28) and Juhi Pawar (BA ‘26) have won the Ford School’s 2026 Ali Family Memorial Writing Prize for written work examining health-related policy concerns.

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Publication

Immigration enforcement fears are reshaping daily life for Michigan immigrants, U-M study finds

May 19, 2026

A new report documents widespread immigration enforcement fears among immigrant Michiganders in Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids and Ypsilanti.

A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement badge with the words 'ICE' in the background

News

Wolverines put policy to work

May 7, 2026

State & Hill spotlights student internships around the world.

Collage of students with photos out in their internships

State & Hill

Faculty news, spring 2026

May 7, 2026

Ford School experts are publishing research, sharing their knowledge, and getting recognized.

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Publication

Medicaid expansion helped enrollees’ long-term financial health, study finds

Apr 28, 2026

New research from Ford School courtesy professors John Ayanian and Helen Levy shows that enrollment in the Michigan Medicaid expansion program improves participants' long-term financial health.

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News

Community water fluoridation has no negative impact on cognitive function, new study shows

Apr 21, 2026

New research from Pamela Herd, the Ford School's Carol Kakalec Kohn Professor of Social Policy, shows no negative relationship between community water fluoridation (CWF) and adolescent or adult cognitive function.

Publication

Lantz: Despite technical challenges, Section 1115 Medicaid waivers can improve health-related social outcomes

Mar 27, 2026

New research from demographer Paula Lantz analyzes the challenges and opportunities state policymakers experience when using Section 1115 Medicaid waivers. The study was co-authored by Ford School student Sofia Hiltner and published in Health Affairs...

News

Justice after trauma? Race, red tape keep sexual assault victims from compensation

Mar 4, 2026

Sociologist Jeremy Levine finds that policies requiring police verification and cooperation, as well as extensive documentation, prevent sexual assault survivors from accessing compensation.

News

When ICE sweeps a community, public health pays a price – and recovery will likely take years

Feb 27, 2026

Poverty Solutions faculty affiliate William D. Lopez co-authors an op-ed for The Conversation about the health impacts of the recent immigration raids.

News

Medical debt & bankruptcy after traumatic injury in Michigan: Study shows who’s most vulnerable

Feb 22, 2026

People in the United States who are hospitalized for traumatic injuries often face increased medical debt and bankruptcy, new research shows.

In the Media

Herd comments on the current state of the Make America Healthy Again Movement

Feb 21, 2026 Slate

Ford School professor Pamela Herd comments on the current status of the MAHA movement after Trump signed an executive order promoting the production of glyphosate, a chemical that has long been one of the main targets of the MAHA movement

Policy Matters

Why I chose a dual MPP/MPH degree

Feb 2, 2026

Delaney McDermott (MPP/MPH '27) discusses why she chose to be a dual Master of Public Policy and Master of Public Health student

In the Media

Weiland says Michigan's childcare programs can only be part of the solution

Jan 26, 2026 Crain's Detroit Business

Recently, child care programs in Michigan, such as Tri-Share, have seen increasing success, prompting them to be proposed at the federal level. While Tri-Share, among other child care programs have proved effective in Michigan, the Ford School's Chri...

News

University of Michigan to lead landmark global mental health survey consortium, expanding to additional countries

Jan 15, 2026

The World Mental Health (WMH) Survey Consortium, which harnesses cross-national data to inform and support policies around education, interventions, and treatment, has now moved to the University of Michigan.

(Left to right) Stephanie Chardoul and William Axinn

News

Levy's health research highlighted by The Washington Post

Nov 16, 2025

“This is a big deal,” said Helen Levy, co-author of both reviews and a professor at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research. “We know health insurance saves lives. Full stop.”

News

As work requirements loom, Medicaid coverage tied to better health, higher employment, U-M study finds

Oct 31, 2025

A University of Michigan study suggests that Medicaid work requirements may work against their intended purpose.

Publication

Paula Lantz analyzes the negative effects of restrictive reproductive care

Oct 30, 2025

When the Supreme Court abruptly ended the constitutional protection of access to abortion care in 2022, experts predicted that restrictive laws would have negatively impact reproductive care, and maternal and infant health outcomes. Paula Lantz exami...

Publication

Bagenstos on the science and politics of public health regulation

Oct 9, 2025

Kohn Professor Samuel R. Bagenstos challenges the prevailing viewpoint that science and politics should be kept separate.

In the Media

Ayanian on Medicaid work requirement impacts and enrollment

Sep 30, 2025 The New York Times

“Folks on Medicaid are often working low-wage jobs, evening and nighttime shifts,” said Dr. John Ayanian, director of the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation at the University of Michigan. “They don’t have a lot of flexibility to take time...

In the Media

Bagenstos: states can ensure access to vaccines

Aug 29, 2025 The New Republic

“All that would have to happen is for some state to purchase a whole bunch of vaccines,” Bagenstos says, “then have the state’s chief health officer prescribe the vaccine to anyone who wants them—and then provide the vaccines out of the state’s own s...

News

Potential health impacts of the ‘big beautiful bill’

Jun 17, 2025

As the U.S. Senate debates the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, University of Michigan experts are available to discuss elements of the proposed spending plan that stand to leave a mark on health, health care and public health.

State & Hill

Faculty news, spring 2025

May 7, 2025

Read about the latest faculty accomplishments and news.

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News

Death by a thousand federal cuts: Current executive actions will not Make America Healthy Again, says Lantz

Apr 9, 2025 The Milbank Quarterly

Paula Lantz highlights an “overt disconnect” between the creation of President Trump’s Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) Commission and his administration's concurrent actions that reduce federal funding for public health initiatives.

News

Shaefer's Rx Kids program celebrates nearly $6M distributed to Flint families in 1st year

Feb 7, 2025

Rx Kids, co-directed by the Ford School's Luke Shaefer, celebrated it one-year anniversary at the end of January. The program has given access to $6M in cash support for over 1,300 Flint families with pregnant mothers and babies in their first years ...

News

Fixing a broken health care system can help heal ailments, stem frustrations

Jan 20, 2025

Pamela Herd is the Carol Kakalec Kohn professor of social policy at the Ford School of Public Policy and a faculty associate at the Institute for Social Research’s Population Studies Center. Her research focuses on inequality and how it intersects wi...

News

Celeste Watkins-Hayes to serve on Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS

Jan 17, 2025

Celeste Watkins-Hayes, the Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, has been invited to serve on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA). This prestigious appointment recognizes...

News

Exciting events at the Ford School this January

Jan 10, 2025

The Ford School is pleased to announce an exciting lineup for our January 2025 Policy Talks @ the Ford School series and other special public events hosted with partners from across campus. Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise note...

News

Q&A with health policy expert Pam Herd

Jan 9, 2025

Sociologist Pamela Herd joined the Ford School faculty in September 2024 as the Carol Kakalec Kohn Professor of Social Policy. Her research focuses on inequality and how it interacts with policy issues including health, aging, and administrative burd...