Distinguished health economist joins Texas A&M Health Science Center

As national leaders continue to debate the advisability and economic impact of health care reform, the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health has reaffirmed its leadership in this area with the recruitment of internationally renowned health economist Michael Morrisey, Ph.D., to the faculty of the college’s Department of Health Policy and Management.

“The intersection of quality, affordability and access is at the core of today’s national debate over health care reform. At such a time, it is critical that academic institutions take ownership of this debate and provide objective assessments to policy makers based on intensive research and community engagement,” said Brett P. Giroir, M.D., executive vice president and CEO of Texas A&M Health Science Center. “With the recruitment of Dr. Morrisey, the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health will enhance its ability to assess and ultimately solve critical health care issues such as access and affordability that face both Texas and the nation.”

Morrisey, who will assume his new role in September 2014, is a pioneer in health economics and his textbook, Health Insurance, is the leading textbook in the field. He currently serves as director of the Lister Hill Center for Health Policy and co-director of the Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research and Education at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

“Dr. Morrisey is one of the most respected health economists in the United States today,” said Jim Burdine, Dr.P.H, interim dean of the Texas A&M School of Public Health. “His esteemed status with policy makers is evidenced by his appointments to the Board of Advisors of the Washington, D.C., Center for Health and Economy, the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Census Research Data Center, and as an adjunct scholar of the American Enterprise Institute and visiting scholar at the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank.”

Morrisey plans to continue his research on Medicaid and children’s health insurance plans with a new focus on the State of Texas, as well as on issues and opportunities that stem directly from the Affordable Care Act rollout to employers, consumers and providers. Two specific areas of Morrisey’s research interests are price transparency in health care, and the growth of high deductible health plans in employer-sponsored health insurance and in the exchanges.

“I am honored to be joining the Texas A&M School of Public Health,” Morrisey said. “The strength of its faculty, its synergy with other diverse Colleges at the University, and its trusted position with State of Texas leadership make it an ideal time to join the outstanding team at the Texas A&M Health Science Center.”

Morrisey’s research is extensively cited and includes five books, more than 160 peer reviewed papers on health economics and health policy, more than 45 encyclopedia entries and other publications, together with 45 technical reports. Previously, he served as deputy editor of Medical Care, one of the highest impact journals in health services research as well as a member of the editorial boards of several of the most influential journals in the field of health economics and health policy. In addition, Morrisey played a pivotal role in the creation of the International Health Economics Association and currently serves as treasurer of the American Society of Health Economists.