(Hybrid) Health Economist (Research Scientist) - Health Affairs Institute

About the Opportunity

The Health Affairs Institute within the WVU Health Sciences Center provides organizational leadership for collaborative activities involving the Health Sciences Center, the West Virginia Department of Health Services (DOHS) and other partners. These include, among others, providing data analytic support, program evaluation expertise, technical assistance, and project management support for the DOHS and other partners. With office locations in both Morgantown and Charleston, the Health Affairs Institute (HAI) employs over 80 full-time staff and engages numerous faculty and staff from other units of the University to fulfill its service mission to the state.

The Research Scientist in Health Economics is a key participant in the State-University partnership between the West Virginia University Health Sciences Center and the West Virginia Department of Health Services. Overarching responsibilities include working with the state to leverage their data and support analytic and policy needs, conducting relevant policy and evaluation research, participating in interdisciplinary research and evaluation teams, and providing oversight of associated data analysts. The health Economist is expected to design and conduct economic analysis of state programs and interventions, provide guidance to the teams on evaluations and support policy development efforts of DoHS. The successful Research Scientist in Health Economics will be data-driven with strong analytical skills and a proven record of finding insights in disparate data and effectively communicating that information to drive decision making.

What You'll Do

• This position conducts and oversees economic modeling, using claims data to assess economic outcomes and health system performance evaluations. The incumbent is expected to support data driven decision making for state health programs and policies. This role is expected to perform hands on data work and produce insights that drive operational improvements, translate complex data into clear, actionable insights for government and industry partners.
• Develop economic models to determine the efficient allocation of resources available to healthcare payers and providers, and develop appropriate communications for a variety of stakeholders.
• Work under the guidance of the Director of the Center for Measurement and Health Data Analytics to maintain sophisticated models to forecast the financial impact of health policies and policy changes.
• Conduct sensitivity analyses and stress testing on models to develop robust understanding on the range of potential outcomes under multiple scenarios.
• Develop knowledge repository of industry best practices and innovations.
• Proactively provide analytic guidance for financial and economic outcomes of policies and policy changes using conventional and predictive study designs.
• Accomplish comparative evaluations and retrospective studies to measure the actual economic outcomes against initial projections.
• Build repeatable and scalable analytic processes.
• Generate executive presentations for stakeholders
• Promote and shape HAI best practices concerning automation and documentation.
• Contribute to department initiatives around automation, Machine learning, AI use, and tooling improvements.
• Maintain compliance with all applicable laws and regulations governing the responsible conduct of research and data security.
• Execute Health Economic Outcomes Research (HEOR) evidence generation including; cost-benefit analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis and budget impact models
• Analyze Medicaid and commercial claims data using SQL, SAS, R, or Python to identify trends, cost drivers, and utilization patterns.
• Collaborate with cross functional teams including data scientists, policy analysts, and state partners.
• Support grant proposals and project scoping with economic insights.
• Oversee/provide mentorship to other analysts as directed by the Director of the Center for Measurement and Health Data Analytics
• Develop and lead training modules as directed by the Director of Health Analytics.
• Lead data risk assessments to mitigate and/or expose data quality and/or security issues in collaboration with the HAI Program Development and Management Office (PDMO) and the Director of Health Information.
• Identify and troubleshoot unanticipated data problems or unexpected results and provide solutions to resolve identified concerns.
• Provide consultation and support for HAI project team members in data analysis and visualization best practices, and new and current technology.
• Participate in high-level stakeholder meetings to understand stakeholder priorities and develop potential solutions as required.
• Develop quality assurance processes and protocols in collaboration with the PDMO.
• Ensure that data analytic and research/evaluation activities are compliant with Health Affairs Institute and University-level policies for the responsible conduct of research as well as federal, and state policies.
• Provide consultation to faculty and government partners regarding preparation of research proposals, design and methodology, data analytics and interpretation of results.
• Identify opportunities for potential collaborations between the Health Sciences Center and the West Virginia Department of Human Services.
• Prepare reports as required by the University, the Health Sciences Center administration, and external agencies. Communicates results of analytic projects and program evaluations with relevant staff of the West Virginia Department of Human Services.
• Conduct or direct special projects as assigned. Act in other matters and capacities as delegated by the Director of the Center for Measurement and Health Data Analytics for the Health Affairs Institute.

Qualifications

• Doctoral degree in Economics, Health Economics, Public Policy, Biostatistics, or related field.
• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant experience with proven track record of HEOR in the following: Relevant disciplines are those that demonstrate a high level of technical and mathematical ability, such as mathematics, economics, physics or computer science
• Proficiency in SQL, SAS, R, or Python for data manipulation and modeling.
• Strong applied econometric skills and experience with large datasets.
• Strong communication skills and ability to present findings to non technical stakeholders.
• Experience working with state agencies or healthcare organizations preferred.
• Ability to communicate policy implications clearly and concisely.
• Ability to work in a fast paced, collaborative environment.
• Experience in government, consulting, or applied research settings preferred.
• Record of research and achievement in health outcomes and policy research (health services research, public health informatics, health policy, clinical outcomes) as evidenced by publications and a sustained research program.
• Experience conducting research/evaluation within the academic and governmental sectors
• Experience in conducting geo-spatial analysis and experience and predictive analytics using machine learning are desired.

All qualifications must be met by the time of employment.