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.

Peter J. Cunningham

Documents & Publications

Title	Date
Patient Engagement During Medical Visits and Smoking Cessation Counseling JAMA Internal Medicine Importance: Increased patient engagement with health and health care is considered crucial to increasing the quality of health care and patient self-management of health. Objective: To examine whether patients with high levels of engagement during medical encounters are more likely to receive advice and counseling about smoking compared with less…	June 9, 2014
Few Americans Switch Employer Health Plans for Better Quality, Lower Costs NIHCR Research Brief No. 12 About one in eight (12.8%) nonelderly Americans with employer coverage switched health plans in 2010—down from one in six (17.2%) in 2003, according to a new national study by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC). As was true in 2003, about 5 percent of people with employer coverage…	January 31, 2013
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
Physician Visits After Hospital Discharge: Implications for Reducing Readmissions NIHCR Research Brief No. 6 Public and private payers view reducing avoidable hospital readmissions as a way to improve quality and reduce unnecessary costs. While policy makers have targeted readmissions stemming from poor quality of care during an initial hospital stay, readmissions also can occur when patients don’t receive appropriate follow-up care or ongoing outpatient…	December 8, 2011
Economic Downturn Strains Miami Health Care System Community Report No. 11 In September 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study (CTS), visited Miami to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 45 health care leaders, including representatives of…	September 29, 2011
Greenville & Spartanburg: Surging Hospital Employment of Physicians Poses Opportunities and Challenges Community Report No. 6 In July 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), as part of the Community Tracking Study (CTS), visited the Greenville-Spartanburg metropolitan area to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 45 health care leaders,…	February 24, 2011
Detroit: Motor City to Medical Mecca? Detroit Community Report In February 2010, a team of researchers from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) visited the Detroit metropolitan area on behalf of the National Institute for Health Care Reform to study how health care is organized, financed and delivered in that community. Researchers interviewed more than 55 health…	August 26, 2010