News

A study by Kira Ryskina and Rachel M. Werner, cited in Penn LDI, found that nursing home staffing, especially for registered nurses, decreased after ownership changes, leading to lower quality ratings. The researchers call for more transparency about ownership on CMS's 5-star site to help families make informed decisions.

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In his op-ed for the STAT, Guy David discusses the increasing trend of physicians taking on leadership roles in universities and other organizations. He highlights how their clinical skills and experiences translate into effective leadership beyond healthcare settings.

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In the op-ed for Penn LDI, Atul Gupta discusses how hospitals exploited a Medicare payment loophole, benefiting for-profit hospitals. This highlights the need for more oversight in hospital payment systems.

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In The Guardian, Jason Karlawish said, "One of the pillars of good quality brain health, to protect your brain over time from developing dementia, is having good quality sleep," adding: "It wasn't a su More »

The University of Pennsylvania has launched a $10 million Center for Media, Technology, and Democracy, with Duncan Watts leading research on misinformation, bias, and their impact on democracy using AI and behavioral experiments.

“Some people came out of the COVID experience thinking like, ‘Thank God for vaccines, yay. I will stand on the barricades to make this happen for folks. More »

In an interview with Finance & Development Magazine, Olivia Mitchell discusses how supporting healthy aging and improving financial literacy will help society reap the benefits of longer lives.

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The Financial Times article featuring Duncan J. Watts challenges the common belief that misinformation is both widespread and a major threat. It emphasizes three key points: the risk of fostering cynicism, the misinterpretation of political issues, and the tendency to overstate the scope of the problem.

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“Everything that you learn about the world represents a choice that someone has made,” Duncan Watts says in The Pennsylvania Gazette. “A journalist or an editor or a publisher has made the choice to focus on something and not something else. And so what you’re reading and what you’re learning is their opinion about what you should know”

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In her 60-second lecture, Paula Fomby highlights three critical aspects of Philadelphia's diverse demography to help incoming Penn students find their community. 

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"What Do You and Philadelphia Have in Common?” Penn Arts & Sciences, August 26, 2024.

“I really love teaching it. It is my specialty area, but more than that, it’s a delight to teach it this way because I really get to know the students well,” said Wendy Roth in Omnia, addressing the Sociology of Race and Ethnicity class she has offered as a first-year seminar for the past five years.

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In his op-ed featured in The Spectator, Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde highlights that the global fertility rate has dropped below the replacement level of 2.1, potentially leading to a population decline within 30 years. 

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Olivia S. Mitchell, in her Op-ed for The wall Street Journal, discusses the key considerations retirees should weigh when deciding whether to roll over their 401(k) into an IRA or leave it in their former employer's plan.
 

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"Figuring out which approaches help increase immunization, and under what circumstances, could help global public health leaders allocate resources more efficiently and ultimately improve health outcomes," said Dolores Albarracin in Penn Today.

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A new Forbes article highlights the woman who shape the way money flows in our country. Olivia Mitchell was featured for many accomplishments such as 300 articles and books, and advising governments including the U.S!

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"50 Over 50: Investment," Forbes, V Chachere, M McGrath, 

In a candid conversation with Wharton Dean Erika James, Olivia S. Mitchell discusses her research on retirement and pension decisions and her insights from over four decades in the field.

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“What I’ve Learned.” Knowledge at Wharton, August 6, 2024.

The research done by Dolores Albarracín shows that a persons ability to spot fake news does not affect how often they seek news from partisan news sources. 

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"Study reveals impact of concern about misinformation on Americans’ media consumption habits," Penn Today, August 1, 2024.

Homelessness in the U.S. spiked 12% in 2023, primarily due to migrant influxes and overwhelming shelter systems. Dennis Culhane wrote in The Signal chronic issues and inadequate housing programs, especially as unsheltered homelessness on the West Coast, pose severe health risks and highlight the need for more federal support.

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Penn LDI reports that on July 8, 2024, Rachel Werner and Norma Coe informed Senator Elizabeth Warren that enforcing the CMS minimum staffing rule could save about 13,000 lives annually and improve resident outcomes.

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Read all about Penn at the 2024 ASA Conference, as well as recap the Summer Institute in Computational Social Science led by Xi Song. Keep and eye out for the extra large section of researcher updates! Plus, a Penn discount code for the IAPHS conference.

READ HERE:

Werner said safety hazards at inadequately staffed homes are very well documented. These hazards include medication errors, slips and falls, and other related medical problems. 

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"Nursing home staffing mandate would save thousands of lives, researchers say," USA Today, K Alltucker, July 20, 2024. 

Zuberi detailed everything from childhood experiences, academic interests, hardships, and education. Be sure to check out the article to get the full story!

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" Four academic journeys explored," Penn Today, July 18, 2024.

“Let’s be honest, saving is no fun. People don’t get ‘utils’ (or utility) out of saving. They get utils out of spending.” said Mitchell. 

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"How Behavioral Factors Shape Retirement Wealth,"  Knowledge at Wharton, S Parameshwaran, July 15, 2024.

The study by Brown suggests older Americans living in subsidized housing are more likely to develop chronic medical problems. 

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Kevin Volpp writes in JAMA Health Forum that the Food Is Medicine initiative by the American Heart Association aims to tackle health issues related to diet by offering subsidized healthy foods. By integrating behavioral economics strategies, these programs could be more effective and better received, ultimately improving health equity and access to food.

At the 2024 AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting, Eliza MacNeal presented a study on coordination for dual-eligible patients, with contributions from Eric Roberts and Rachel M. Werner. Meanwhile, Sameed Khatana presented research on VA housing and cardiovascular outcomes, also with contributions from Eric Roberts.

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Pen LDI reports that during a session on Care for Vulnerable Populations in Medicare at AcademyHealth 2024, Eric Roberts discussed how Medicaid disenrollment affects low-income Medicare beneficiaries' prescription drug coverage and medication adherence. More »

"A debate inherently tests an individual’s cognitive abilities: “attention, concentration, multitasking, working memory, language.” said Karlawish regarding the recent presidential debate.

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"Watching Biden, many see the heartbreaking indignities of aging," The Washington Post, A Parker & M Kornfield, July 7, 2024.

The programs are heavily focused on health and health care disparities and advancing the needs of underrepresented groups in health services, population health, and clinical epidemiology.

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"Young Scholars Arrive at 2024 AcademyHealth Research Meeting," Penn LDI, H Levins, June 29, 2024. 

"In medicine, technological advancements are judged by their ability to improve access to care, decrease its cost or improve its quality," said Bressman regarding the new hologram doctors. “I don’t know of any data to support the idea that this would improve the quality of the visit beyond a usual telemedicine visit,” 

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Read all about PARC @ AcademyHealth and the latest news and publications from our Research Associates - and catch up on Dorothy Roberts keynote at the recent symposium on Genetic Ancestry and Perceptions of Race.

READ HERE.

Come check out the AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting hosted June 29th - July 2nd in Baltimore Maryland. Many of our PARC researchers have papers and posters being presented! We have gathered everything here for your convenience.

The study revealed racial disparities within the Veteran Health Administration (VA). Roberts says these disparities were small and improved since 2016, however they can still be seen today.

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“The debates offer a real-time, high-stakes environment to observe and analyze how media outlets present and potentially skew the same event,” says Watts. The Media Bias Detector organizes all the info you might need regarding how topics are covered through different well known sources. 

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“Providers in Idaho continue to operate in a risky environment but, at least for now, the district court’s opinion allows them to provide abortions when necessary to stabilize an emergency medical condition,” Hoffman adds. “The opinion does not explain why the Court took this procedural punt, but the concurring and dissenting opinions give a window into the strong disagreement among the Justices on this case.”

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“In 2020, roughly one in three individuals who were hospitalized with COVID-19 died within 30-days of admission. Our study found that individuals’ likelihood of surviving was related to hospitals’ investments in nursing services prior to the pandemic—in terms of hiring sufficient numbers of RNs, employing nurses with bachelor’s educational preparation, and sustaining favorable work environments,” Lasater said.

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According to the study by Lasater, McHugh, and Aiken hospitals with a one to four nurse to patient ratio fared better during COVID-19. Additionally, each additional patient added to a nurses workload increased chances of death by 20 percent.

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Lasater and Aiken found that risk of death for patients admitted into a fully staffed hospital was significantly lower than patients in an understaffed hospital. 

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"Hospital Nursing Resources Tied to COVID-19 Survival," Microsoft Start,  L Solomon, June 24, 2024.

In a time when Philly's overall population has decreased, he points to welcoming immigrants as a key strategy for re-invigorating the city's growth. Parrado also suggests that the ebb and flow of young professionals in - and out - of the city isn't bad news.

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"Philadelphia Lost More Than 50,000 Residents During the Pandemic. Now What?" Philadelphia Magazine, S Smith, June 22, 2024.

Bowles transformed years of research into a new way to keep medical records that has become standard in hospitals everywhere.

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"Making Things Happen," The Penn Gazette, J Greco, June 21, 2024. 

Xi Song details how intergenerational mobility declined in the United States after World War II but then dives further to explore the diversity of experiences for different groups. She discusses the trends in mobility as broken down by race, immigration status, and gender. 

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The research shows Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) are linked to aging and affluence and have replaced infectious diseases and malnutrition as the dominant causes of ill health and death in much of the world including India. The present study examines rising rates of two NCDs heart disease and diabetes. More »

Penn LDI reports that Robert Burke, and Paula Chatterjee, received top 2024 Society of Hospital Medicine awards for excellence in research and junior investigation, respectively, recognizing their contributions to hospital medicine. Burke’s work focusing on care for frail older adults.

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The research uses data from the Malawi Longitudinal Study of Families and Health to examine the relationship between mortality and fertility in Malawi - specifically the impact of individual-specific subjective mortality expectations on fertility choice.

READ THE PAPER.

Pamela Cacchione said, “We’re hoping that they will reframe their design thinking to a much more human-centered and health-equity focus,” referring to the goals of this cross-cutting event. 

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“Hospitals use respite care to get indigent patients off their books, and then they’re often discharged back into homelessness,” said Culhane. 

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"For an Older Homeless Population, a New Type of Care," The New York Times, J DeParle, June 10, 2024. 

"The findings show that replacing RNs with non-RN staff is dangerous to patients,” said lead-author Lasater. The study also finds no evidence of an RN shortage in the US.

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"Replacing Registered Nurses in High Stakes Hospital Care is Dangerous to Patients," Penn Nursing, June 10, 2024.

“Since the 2016 U.S. presidential election, many thousands of papers have been published about the dangers of false information propagating on social media,” says Watts. “But what this literature has almost universally overlooked is the related danger of information that is merely biased. That’s what we look at here in the context of COVID vaccines.” 

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Duckworth talks about many complicated human emotions such as self control and temper. Check out the full episode with Kelly Corrigan now!

Check out the episode here.

Congrats to our PSC and PARC Research Associates who have been awarded 2024 Penn Global Research and Engagement Grants. The program prioritizes projects that bring together leading scholars and practitioners across the University community and beyond to develop new insight on significant global issues in key countries and regions around the world, a core pillar of Penn’s global strategic framework.
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The event, moderated by Werner, focused on many practices and policies regarding primary care, nursing, and lab analytical services. This includes may policies that might be set to change. 

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"Nursing Advances That Aren’t and Other Trends in Health Care Innovation," Penn LDI, H Levins, May 29, 2024. 

“As the ways we categorize race and ethnicity change, so will epidemiological patterns,” said Montoya-Williams, “Studying these changes will allow us to better understand and address disparities in preterm birth.”

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Souths study concluded from interviews that there is major feeling of distrust towards emergency departments. This could be from ancestral or personal experiences with healthcare. These both could affect the patients feelings before they even make it to the door. 

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Many workers with student loans found that saving for retirement is extremely difficult. With Secure 2.0 however, as workers pay off their student loans, their employers could match those payments with contributions to retirement accounts. Mitchell, a co-author of the National Bureau of Economic Research's study on Secure 2.0, said "My guess is that many large employers will find it useful in attracting and retaining scarce talent, but smaller firms might not."

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In the Women in Economics podcast, Olivia Mitchell discusses how the prospects of early retirement are fading fast with rising life expectancy, challenges facing pension systems, and more.

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Fears of discrimination, the high cost of health care and possible deportation are causing some Latino immigrants in Philadelphia to delay or forego prenatal care. Montoya-Williams expresses concern for the immigrants who cannot receive the care needed. 

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Be sure to check out the article using Lasater's study to see how more than 7,800 nurses have left between 2018 and 2021. 

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This newsletter includes congratulations for our spring graduates, a wrap up of the 2024 PARC Aging Retreat, upcoming events, news, and more!

After meeting John MacDonald, Maya Moritz, a criminology doctoral student, was inspired to investigate the correlation between murals and crime rate.

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Linda Aiken, Co-Director of Magnet4Europe, shares highlights of the 2024 conference. Research presented at the conference showed that hospital conditions can be improved, and in doing so have great results.

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"Magnet4Europe Celebration Conference 2024: A Milestone in Healthcare Excellence," Magnet4Europe, J Kleine & L Aiken, May 23, 2024.

Poets and Quants quoted one of her students saying that "Professor Low’s class is one of the most impactful that I’ve taken at Wharton. It has prompted the most (and some of the most thought-provoking) conversations with classmates/friends/family outside of the classroom and provided me with new frameworks for evaluating societal structures and practices. Professor Low is also very skilled at holding the attention of the lecture hall.

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“You don’t want people to think that everywhere is so dangerous in a way that it’s not,” said MacDonald, “On the other hand, you don’t want people to think that, oh, this is just somebody else’s problem. It’s not happening in my neighborhood.”

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Dolores Albarracín, was featured in Penn Today for her research on determining change in human behavior. Albarracín and her team strive to find the science behind behavior change to determine the best ways to promote benefits in our daily lives.

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Researchers study how households have changed over time and the effect this has on our daily lives.

Werner adds that concerns about money, as well as data security, seem to be driving CMS. “What I have been told is that the proposed fee changes are simply to allow [CMS] to completely balance their books.”

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Lasater show how and why nurses are experiencing high levels of burnout in our hospitals.

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"There isn’t a nursing shortage — it’s nurses’ refusal to be part of a system that puts profits before safety." Lasater says in her new article. 

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"What nurses really want: sufficient staffing for patient care," Stat News, K Lasater, J Muir, May 10, 2024.

Individuals eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid often lack the care they need, Werner argues that the programs fail to integrate coverage and coordinate care.

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"It’s time to end the Medicare-Medicaid merry-go-round," The Hill, R Werner, May 9, 2024.

“I hope policymakers might consider public-private partnerships like the National Flood Insurance Program to address private insurance affordability for low-income households who are most vulnerable to housing damage,” Ma said.

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"Exploring sustainable development and the human impact of natural disasters," Penn Today, May 8, 2024.

Just a friendly reminder, the PARC Aging Retreat is happening this Friday! Take a look at the retreat program to see the agenda for the day.
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The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the delay of the implementation of its restrictions on accessing Medicare and Medicaid data. Werner as well as many others, published articles explaining this.

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“Since 2005, more than 190 rural hospitals have closed across the United States, and many more are in danger of closing because of financial shortfalls. This problem is only getting worse, with a recent report finding that half of rural hospitals lost more money in the past year, up from 43% in the previous year.” Said Werner in her opening session. 

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The Academy aims to tackle serious challenges in order to advance common goals. Albarracín among 5 others, has been elected into the honorary society.

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“We see financial literacy much like other kinds of education. It takes time to learn financial concepts and to apply them, and sometimes it takes money so that you can hire someone or take a course or what have you. " Mitchell says.

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Culhane commented on the urgency of the homeless crisis, as well as provided his take on the problem.

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“In general, the U.S. supports parents and caregivers less than many other countries,” Dr. Coe said, “which has numerous and lasting intergenerational effects on health and wealth.”

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The American Association for the Advancement of Science consists of 500 researches honored for their scientific achievements. Congrats Dolores! 

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Karen Lasater says that poor working conditions for nurses has been an ongoing problem that predates the pandemic.

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 “It’s very hard to avoid tracking because it’s baked into the fabric of Web 2.0 at this point,” Friedman said regarding medical-care websites.

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Many African American citizens are Charleston can not trace their lineage back beyond a few generations. However with the help of Schurr, DNA tests reveal much more information regarding their past.

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In his recent article Mandell explains the changes in Methadone treatments since the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, getting treatment was an inconvenience. However with the implementation of take home treatment, there have been many pros and cons that Mandell explores. 

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"Methadone treatment has been reformed for the better. States shouldn’t go back to the old ways," STAT, R Arden & D 

Mandell.

Fomby's new article goes through the statistics of marriages especially how marriages effect the children involved. 

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A worldwide increase in life expectancy and decrease in fertility rates led the World Health Organization to predict in 2022 that the proportion of the world’s population over 60 years old will nearly double between 2015 and 2050, from 12 to 22 percent. Related difficulties include providing health and long-term care needs, finding treatments for cognitive diseases like Alzheimer’s, and addressing health disparities in aging.

The study co-authored by Venkataramani found that lower-wage workers did not receive much economic benefit at all.

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"Doctors, Nurses, and Managers Received Wage Hikes After Medicaid Expansion While Lower-Paid Workers Did Not," Penn LDI, M Meline, April 4, 2024.

“I thought these robots were the most ridiculous things I had ever seen,” Cacchione said, “until I actually picked one up and felt it and interacted with it myself.” 

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"Baby seal robots are comforting older adults on Penn Presbyterian's acute care unit," Technical.ly, S Huffman, April 2, 2024.

This PRB article examines new research on the impact of socioeconomic status on aging - a study by PENN PSC's Courtney Boen is among those cited.

READ THE STUDY HERE:

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The comprehensive list uses Mitchell's findings to dive deeper into what retirees wish they could have done sooner.

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"5 Biggest Regrets of Retirees (Hint: Claiming Social Security Too Early Is One of Them)" The Globe And Mail, March 30, 2024.

Mitchell discusses how early retirement is becoming difficult to achieve as life expectancy steadily climbs and the pension system is falling short.

LISTEN OR READ HERE: Women in Economics: Olivia Mitchell on Retirement Reality

The article written by MacDonald, focuses on social science as well as identifying root causes that form many social issues.

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"The Precautionary Principle," Vital City, J MacDonald, March 27, 2024.

Penn Today features the Population Studies Center as the co-sponsor for the Symposium on Immigration Policy, and Chenoa Flippen as the event host. 

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Mitchell explained that “This lack of financial literacy then translates into greater financial regret among older women” 

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Duckworth was described by "Having spent years studying the best ways to Nudge people with choice-preserving but psychologically wise interventions to help them make better decisions." 

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"Cass Sunstein on Nudging, Sludge, and the Power of ‘Dishabituation’," Knowledge At Wharton, A Basiouny, March 25, 2024."

Pauly and Burns say that strategies across private equity investment have largely stayed consistent. However, the investigators say there’s “less public information on firm performance” today. So, they argue, the current “brouhaha” should be tempered by past experience.

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The study found that increased incarceration rates had a noticeable effect on the birth weight of newborns. Both Boen as well as Venkataramani found that incarceration rates do have a direct impact on the overall health of the population.

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Penn SAS News features Irma Elo for being appointed as Tamsen and Michael Brown Presidential Professor. 

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“Many of our researchers and staff were actively looking for ways to respond and recognized the need for greater emphasis on justice and inclusion in our own research processes." said Halpern.

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"Adding Diversity to Your Research Process: A New System," Penn LDI, H Levins, March 18, 2024.

State and federal regulators have the authority to regulate insurers’ networks and could end the practice, Hoffman said. But until now “there hasn’t been federal regulation about continuity of coverage,” Hoffman said.

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Take a look at the Penn Population Studies Newsletter for upcoming events, new PARC research associates, and researchers featuring in news articles. 

“Nurses want to leave their jobs when care conditions are poor and those same unfavorable care conditions are not good for patients either,” said Linda Aiken in EuroNews.Health. Aiken then explains how the pandemic has effected our healthcare system long term.

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Penn LDI highlights a study conducted by research associates at PARC, Guy David and Alon Bergman, revealing that advanced care is less prevalent in communities characterized by greater deprivation. 

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Penn LDI presents an opinion piece authored by Eric Bressman, a research associate at PARC, discussing a recent study concerning the expiration of state licensure. Bressman collaborated on this study with Rachel Werner. 

The AD Scientific Index has ranked Jere R. Behrman among the world's Top 100 Economics and Econometrics Scientists for 2024! More »

Penn LDI features Rachel Werner and Mary Ersek on the virtual panel of experts exploring the benefit’s, challenges, and potential of the Medicare Hospice program. 

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Penn LDI features a study by Eugenia South that gathers personal experiences to aid the dismantling of structural racism in medicine. 

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Penn LDI features the new study by Rachel Werner and Norma Coe, that examined data on over 2 million Medicare beneficiaries who had knee or hip replacements, among the most common surgeries. More »

“Financial education is most effective when there is a rigorous curriculum, a specific course devoted to personal finance (rather than embedding these concepts into other classes), and trained teachers,” said Olivia Mitchell in a MarketWatch artic More »

“A goal would be for employers to offer more access and, when possible, encouragement to learn and implement important financial lessons during the worklife,” Olivia Mitchell said in MarketWatch.

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Penn Today and Knowledge at Wharton features Angela Lee Duckworth for her new study on that found that breaking down a commitment to volunteer 200 hours per year for a nonprofit into smaller subgoals increased the amount of time More »

While the decision’s practical impact shouldn’t be underestimated, the Fifth Circuit may pick up on a broader issue that could attract the US Supreme Court’s attention and affect a wide variety of cases—whether Congress improperly delegated its lawmaking authority to an advisory committee, Hoffman said.

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Holger Sieg, who has also been a National Bureau of Economic Research research affiliate in public economics and political economy since 2000, focuses his research on public and urban economics, as well as the political economy of state and local governments.

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"Holger Sieg Named Baird Term Professor of Economics," Penn Arts & Sciences, February 29, 2024.

Penn Today and Annenberg School for Communication highlights Tukufu Zuberi at the 2nd Annual W.E.B. Du Bois Lecture in Public Social Science, discussing Du Bois’ contributions to the field and to humanity.

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Kevin Volpp, the principal investigator of PMHH and director of the Penn Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics, explains how the program works and who is eligible in Penn Medicine News.

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“Research access and productivity do not need to be sacrificed in the name of data security,” said Werner in an opinion piece about the policy. “Using data should not strain the budgets of even the most well-financed institutions.” 

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Yahoo Finance quotes research associate Rachel Werner on funding for long-term care. Werner says, "In the United States, we lack any sort of comprehensive approach to funding for long-term care."

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Mark Pauly in MedpageToday explains how popular branded drugs are sold at prices nearly three times lower, on average, in Canada. However, due to purity concerns, the FDA has long forbidden the import of these drugs.

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NPR features research associate Karen Lasater talking about nursing shortage problems in hospitals. She says that the nursing shortage is not a pipeline problem, but a leaky bucket problem.

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Knowledge at Wharton features executive director of Wharton’s Pension Research Council Olivia Mitchell joining the show to discuss why retirement gets better with annuities.

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The new  Penn Population Studies Newsletter highlights researches in the news, awards received by researchers, new working papers, and some exciting events coming up. 

Mother Jones quotes Dorothy Roberts on coerced home searches. Roberts says "Coerced home searches, invasion of families’ privacy, and threatening parents with child removal are integral aspects of a system designed to disrupt the most marginalized communities in America." 

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The Atlantic features Olivia Mitchell in an article discussing what companies owe retirees. 

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"What Companies Owe Retirees." The Atlantic, L Kelley, February 20, 2024. 

Penn Today and the Annenberg School for Communication features Duncan Watts for his new study. More »

STAT features Rachel Werner discussing the tension between data security and research accessibility, highlighting the concerns over the new CMS rules implemented. 

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Penn LDI features the study by Nancy Hodgson and Adriana Perez that highlights the effect confident caregivers may have on family members. 

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Penn Today highlights a new study by Eugenio Paglino, Irma Elo, and Samuel Preston on the relation between natural and Covid-19 deaths. 

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Take a look at the Penn Population Studies Newsletter for upcoming events, recent publications by PSC and PARC research associates, and researchers featuring in news articles. 

Penn LDI features research associate Eric Roberts' new study that finds modest improvements from integrated care for dual-eligible beneficiaries. 

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Hawaii Public Radio features Dorothy Roberts talking about the death of a 10-year-old Oʻahu girl, who officials say was abused and starved by her legal guardians. 

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Penn Today features Courtney Boen as the thesis advisor of Taussia Boadi. Their research looks at the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, birth outcomes, and resilience in Black women.

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Penn LDI highlights that Wharton Healthcare Analytics Lab will be collaborating with Kevin Volpp, and his team at the Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics to integrate dynamic adaptation and personalization into clinical trials. 

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Penn Today features Atheendar Venkataramani for finding that black adults across the U.S. suffer from sleep problems following exposure to news about unarmed black individuals killed by police during police encounters.

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Postdoctoral fellow Helene Purcell co-authored a paper along with Justine Herve and Sneha Mani. 

Research Associate Jeremy Greenwood co-authors a paper along with Effrosyni Adamopoulou, Nezih Guner, and Karen Kopecky. 

Research Associate Jere Behrman co-authors a paper with Shireen AlAzzawi, Hai-Anh Dang, Vladimir Hlasny, and Kseniya Abanokova. 

Research Associate Jere Behrman co-authors a paper along with Muhammad Farhan Majid and Hanna Wang. 

Min Kim writes a paper on Financial Literacy, Portfolio Choice, and Wealth Inequality.

Medpage Today features Linda Aiken talking about the late Claire Fagin. She says she was a "nurse visionary with the savvy to make things happen". 

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"Nurse Community Mourns 'Trailblazer' Claire Fagin, PhD, RN." Medpage Today, S Firth, February 6, 2024. 

Research Associate Petra Todd co-authors a paper along with Shasha Wang.

Biogen claims their decision was simply "a reprioritization of resources." However, Karlawish explains how the decision to stop the study and sale of Adulhem was simply for profit.

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"Aduhelm was a mess — and it could happen again," STAT, J Karlawish, February 6, 2024.

Penn Nursing features the new study by Nancy Hodgson and Adriana Perez that shows promising results in improving the quality of life (QOL) and sleep quality in individuals living with memory problems. 

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Penn Medicine features Atheendar Venkataramani's research that found statistically significant decreases in sleep duration among Black adults, after exposure to deaths of unarmed Black individuals during police encounters.

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The article featuring Atheendar Venkataramanis' study in The New York Times shows that black people were consistently more likely to report harmfully low levels of sleep after such a killing th More »

Penn Medicine showcases Scott Halpern and his leadership in a project within the scientist training program, which aims to enhance patient-centered research and care, receiving a $5 million boost.

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Penn Today highlights research associate Dorothy Roberts addressing the question on civil rights being enough, during the 23rd annual Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lecture in Social Justice. 

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Knowledge at Wharton features Duncan Watts for his study on quantifying individual and collective common sense. 

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"What Is Common Sense?" Knowledge at Wharton, N Magubane, January 30, 2024. 

Medicare rules need updating to ensure patients get care when they need it. Penn LDI features Kimberly Waddell and Robert Burke's study. 

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Penn LDI features Peter Groeneveld's study revealing how the affordable care act has helped improve cardiovascular outcomes. 

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Werners' study shows the number of Medicaid-covered patients seeking home care increased by over 1.2 million people between 2008 and 2019, and rates during the COVID-19 pandemic suggest that number will only continue to grow.

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"10 health care industries with the largest share of retirement-age workers," Incredible Health, H Young, January 25, 2024.

Check out the first Penn Population Studies Newsletter of 2024. This newsletter showcases researchers featured in the news, upcoming events such as PARC aging chats and the aging retreat, updates on the PSC Colloquium Series, and information on the Quartet Pilot Research Project Competition.

Penn Today features research associate Duncan Watts for his study on individual and collective common sense. 

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"The Commonalities of Common Sense." Penn Today, N Magubane, January 23, 2024. 

Healthday quotes PARC research associate Scott Halpern for his study on Palliative care. 

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“Coaches try to break goals down to a point that the first levels of goal achievement are almost guaranteed… Psychologists call this goal gradients—the idea that people work much harder to achieve goals that are seen as being in reach.” Kevin Volpp said in Time.

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Parents quotes research associate Paula Fomby on contraceptive methods. 

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"American Families Will Shrink in the Near Future, New Study Says." Parents, B A Mayer, January 19, 2024. 

Penn Medicine features Scott Damrauer as one of the six physician-scientists from the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, who have been elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation.

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MarketWatch quotes Olivia Mitchell, stating that individuals experiencing loneliness or depression are significantly more susceptible to falling victim to fraud.

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Penn LDI features Courtney Boen's research, which illuminates the health consequences of a Racialized Society and explores potential strategies for mitigation. 

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Penn LDI features Scott Halpern and Mary Ersek's study showing a simple intervention improving end-of-life care for seriously ill patients. 

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Penn Medicine highlights the palliative care study conducted by Scott Halpern as the largest ever study demonstrating scalable strategies to increase support for serious patients. 

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Annenberg School for Communication highlights a new report by Dolores Albarracín on identifying effective ways to halt the spread of misinformation online, including debunking and “prebunking".

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Penn LDI highlights Dolores Albarracín shedding light on a new factor in understanding how people think of climate change: exposure to record-breaking heat.

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Penn Today features Sarah Tishkoff's study to offer a better understanding of genes and variants responsible for skin color, providing insights into human evolution and local adaptation.

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“We’ve substantially caught up, which is incredible. It’s actually an amazing feat.” said Alison Buttenheim in The Atlantic regarding falling rates of vaccination in children.

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Research Associate Hans-Peter Kohler co-authors a paper along with Alberto Ciancio, Fabrice Kampfen, and Rebecca Thornton. 

Knowledge at Wharton highlights Olivia Mitchell's study making a case for deferred income annuities with some equity exposure in defined contribution plans.

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Wisconsin Public Radio features Rachel Werner's interaction with the WPR'S "The Morning Show". 

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"Froedtert Hospital Planning 9-Story Patient Tower at Wauwatosa Campus." Wisconsin Public Radio, C Hess, January 9, 2024. 

The New York Times features research associate Dennis Culhane for his study on modern homelessness. 

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Penn LDI highlights the projects of Catherine Auriemma and Guy David for the Penn LDI small grants program in 2024.

“What really kills you is when they tell you it will arrive on Monday, but it arrives on Friday,” says Fernández-Villaverde in The Wall Street Journal, regarding supply chain shock post-pandemic. 

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Penn LDI highlights health policy research blogs featuring PARC and PSC associates. 

Citations:

"LDI Research Blogs That Caught Your Attention in 2023." Penn LDI, K Kamara & M Bolas, January 3, 2024. 

Penn LDI showcases attention-grabbing news articles that spotlight some of the PARC and PSC research associates. 

Citations:

"LDI News That Caught Your Attention in 2023." Penn LDI, H Levins, January 3, 2024. 

Responding to the release of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) 2023 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress that cited a “record level” of homelessness. More »