The Fund supports networks of state health policy decision makers to help identify, inspire, and inform policy leaders.
The Milbank Memorial Fund supports two state leadership programs for legislative and executive branch state government officials committed to improving population health.
The Fund identifies and shares policy ideas and analysis to advance state health leadership, strong primary care, and sustainable health care costs.
Keep up with news and updates from the Milbank Memorial Fund. And read the latest blogs from our thought leaders, including Fund President Christopher F. Koller.
The Fund publishes The Milbank Quarterly, as well as reports, issues briefs, and case studies on topics important to health policy leaders.
The Milbank Memorial Fund is is a foundation that works to improve population health and health equity.
June 2025 Jessica Mar, Sarah Kinsler,
In 2024 and 2025, Bailit Health convened two work groups to establish consensus definitions and methodologies for health care spending analyses with support from the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs. More
June 2025 Lauren Christiansen-Lindquist,
The health and well-being of all Americans — but especially women and babies — relies on timely and accurate data. Pregnancy and early childhood are particularly vulnerable periods that require careful monitoring, support, and response. The more up-to-date information we have, the better chance we have of preventing unnecessary deaths, building healthy families, and setting children up for success. Yet, US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s changes to the agency eliminated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Reproductive Health, among other divisions, almost entirely. More
June 2025 Grace Flaherty, Michael Bailit,
Health care affordability is a key concern for state agencies and policymakers looking to ensure access to care without creating undue financial burdens on patients, employer purchasers, and states. But affordability means different things to different stakeholders. For consumers, it might mean whether they can pay out-of-pocket costs without skipping care. For employers, it may mean health plan premium increases that don’t cut into their margins and/or reduce the ability offer competitive wages. For state officials, it might mean balancing the state budget by managing Medicaid and state employee health plan spending. More
June 2025 Eric T. Roberts, Narda Ipakchi, Josh Kramer,
The US House of Representatives–passed tax bill includes a provision that would delay implementation of a federal regulation designed to reduce paperwork burdens that limit older adults’ access to benefits. More
June 2025 Craig Wilson, Joseph W. Thompson ,
Whether states adopt work requirements voluntarily or implement them pursuant to a federal requirement, they have the advantage of being able to learn from the problems encountered by Arkansas, the first state to implement a Medicaid work requirement. More
May 2025 Ann M. Nguyen, Alexandra M. Williams, Stephanie Marcello ,
Integrated care functions as a treatment and prevention strategy, where healthy behaviors are established well before they turn into complex, expensive chronic conditions. More
May 2025 Stephanie B. Gold, MD, Kyle Leggott, Sarah Hemeida, Lakshmi Karra, Apoorva Ram, Lauren S. Hughes ,
To inform state-level primary care payment policies, we reviewed recent policies advancing primary care payment reform in the commercial sector and conducted interviews with 50 stakeholders in five pioneering states: Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Washington. More
April 2025 Alex Reger, Lisa Sementilli ,
The Connecticut Office of Health Strategy is working toward engaging employers in the policy process. More
April 2025 Jennifer Avegno,
With federal funding cuts affecting local health departments, running a strong ground game is more challenging now than ever. More
April 2025 Bryant Rucker,
We need a more racially and ethnically diverse PA workforce to reflect the US patient population, But despite the significant increase in the number of PA graduates, there has been a steady decrease in Black graduates. Black representation began its decline as many PA programs transitioned to masters-level programs. According to the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA), 38 physician assistant schools had zero Black graduates and 16 schools had zero Hispanic graduates from 2019 to 2021. More
