Thursday Lecture Series: Does the United States have a Healthcare System (10/23-11/20)   

The U.S. spends substantially more per capita on health care than other wealthy nations while faring poorly on outcomes like longevity and infant mortality. This talk examines how the last 30 years of government policies--such as anti-trust enforcement and the Affordable Care Act--have shaped hospital and insurance markets and public health. Dr. Miller will also discuss what’s ahead, and how our current policy choices stand to alter the system of health care in the United States over the next decade.

Sarah Miller is an associate professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. She received a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2012. Dr. Miller’s research interests are in health economics and the short-term and long-term effects of public policies that expand health insurance coverage, and in the effects of income on health and well-being. In 2022, Dr. Miller was awarded the ASHEcon Medal, given by the American Society of Health Economists to an economist aged 40 or younger who has made the most significant contributions to the field of health economics. She is also a co-editor for the Journal of Public Economics. Her work has been published in the American Economic Review, the Quarterly Journal of Economics, the New
England Journal of Medicine, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, the Journal of Public Economics, and the Review of Economics and Statistics, among other journals, and has been cited in outlets such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the Economic Report of the President.

There has been, and will continue to be, tremendous change and turmoil in the U.S. healthcare system. Understanding these changes and how they impact children’s health in America and other nations will be the focus of this presentation.

Dr. Freed has over 30 years of experience in children’s health services research. He founded the first pediatric health services research centers in the U.S. and Australia. He has been the principal investigator of numerous grants on child health policy and health economics, immunizations, healthcare quality measurement, health inequities, physician behavior and the medical workforce. He is past president of the
Society for Pediatric Research, the largest research society in child health, and past chair of the U.S. National Vaccine Advisory Committee.

Primary care is the foundation of a high-functioning health system—yet in the U.S., it faces growing strain. This presentation will explore the evidence behind primary care’s value, examine how current policies and events are shaping its future, and highlight emerging models of innovation. Attendees will gain a clearer understanding of primary care’s critical role and leave better equipped to navigate both primary and specialty care within the evolving U.S. healthcare landscape.

Julie Phillips, MD, MPH (she/hers) is Professor and Chair of Family Medicine at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. She leads a statewide department focused on community-engaged education, care, and research. A national leader in medical education research, Dr. Phillips’ interests include primary care workforce development, narrative medicine, and size-inclusive care. She practices Family Medicine in East Lansing, Michigan.

This presentation will review how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has evolved since 2010, presenting how it has influenced coverage, access, and health outcomes with a focus on Medicaid expansion in Michigan. The presentation will also discuss changes to the ACA implemented by the President and Congress in 2025 and consider their implications for patients, healthcare providers, and the U.S. healthcare system.

Dr. Ayanian is the inaugural Director of the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation which includes 760 faculty across the University. His research focuses on access to care and quality of care, and he led a U-M team evaluating the Medicaid expansion in Michigan. He earned his AB degree from Duke University and MD and MPP degrees from Harvard University and completed his internal medicine residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

This presentation will be about the unique partnership between Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan and the physicians across the state. Dr. Englesbe will talk about how a community of collaboration and trust among physicians within Michigan has led to remarkable improvements and healthcare quality and value.

Dr. Englesbe performs abdominal transplant surgery on children and adults. He leads the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan funded statewide quality Collaboratives. He has been at the University of Michigan since 1997. He proudly has two daughters who are undergraduates at Michigan, and a younger son who aspires to be.

THURSDAY LECTURE SERIES: DOES THE UNITED STATES HAVE A HEALTH CARE SYSTEM? (10/23–11/20)

The provision of health/medical care services in the United States has evolved into a very fragmented set of policies. This series will describe and analyze certain aspects of the financing and delivery of services in the U.S. These will include child health policies, efforts to develop best practices for physicians, public health insurance policies such as the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and Medicare, and challenges for the development of the physician workforce.

This lecture series was planned by John Abraham, Richard Barron, Donna Clack, Avi Eisbruch, Todd Grant, Jerry Newman and chair Craig Ramsay.

Sponsorship: University of Michigan Health Geriatric and Palliative Medicine