The National Institute for Health Care Reform (NIHCR) contracted with the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) between 2009 and 2013 to conduct health policy research and analyses to improve the organization, financing and delivery of health care in the United States. HSC ceased operations on Dec. 31, 2013, after merging with Mathematica Policy Research, which assumed the HSC contract to complete NIHCR projects. Beginning in 2014, NIHCR has contracted with Altarum Institute’s Center for Sustainable Health Spending and others, with a focus on research to improve health in Detroit.

Laurie E. Felland

Documents & Publications

Title	Date
Local Public Hospitals: Changing with the Times HSC Research Brief No. 25 Over the last 15 years, public hospitals have pursued multiple strategies to help maintain financial viability without abandoning their mission to care for low-income people, according to findings from the Center for Studying Health System Change’s (HSC) site visits to 12 nationally representative metropolitan communities. Local public hospitals serve as…	November 29, 2012
Safety-Net Providers in Some U.S. Communities Have Increasingly Embraced Coordinated Care Models Health Affairs, Vol. 31, No. 8 Safety net organizations, which provide health services to uninsured and low-income people, increasingly are looking for ways to coordinate services among providers to improve access to and quality of care and to reduce costs. This analysis, a part of the Community Tracking Study, examined trends in safety net coordination activities…	August 6, 2012
A Long and Winding Road: Federally Qualified Health Centers, Community Variation and Prospects Under Reform HSC Research Brief No. 21 Community health centers have evolved from fringe providers to mainstays of many local health care systems. Those designated as federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), in particular, have largely established themselves as key providers of comprehensive, efficient, high-quality primary care services to low-income people, especially Medicaid and uninsured patients. The Center…	November 10, 2011
Physicians Key to Health Maintenance Organization Popularity in Orange County Community Report No. 10 In June 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study (CTS), visited Orange County, Calif., to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 45 health care leaders, including…	August 11, 2011
Key Findings from HSC’s 2010 Site Visits: Health Care Markets Weather Economic Downturn, Brace for Health Reform HSC Issue Brief No. 135 Lingering fallout—loss of jobs and employer coverage—from the great recession slowed demand for health care services but did little to slow aggressive competition by dominant hospital systems for well-insured patients, according to key findings from the Center for Studying Health System Change’s (HSC) 2010 site visits to 12 nationally representative…	May 26, 2011
Lansing’s Dominant Hospital, Health Plan Strengthen Market Positions Community Report No. 7 In August 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study (CTS), visited the Lansing metropolitan area to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 40 health care leaders,…	March 22, 2011
Northern New Jersey Health Care Market Reflects Urban-Suburban Contrasts Community Report No. 4 In May 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study (CTS), visited the northern New Jersey metropolitan area to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 40 health…	December 24, 2010
State Reform Dominates Boston Health Care Market Dynamics Community Report No. 1 In March 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study, visited the Boston metropolitan area to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 50 health care leaders, including…	September 1, 2010