Mission

The Nicholas C. Petris Center is a health economics research center that focuses on empirical research on important health policy topics. Our mission is to guide public policy by creating the data and conducting the research needed to understand today’s complex healthcare market. The Petris Center focuses on consumer protection, affordability, and access to health care, especially for low and middle-income individuals. Our current research focuses on market concentration, competition, and regulation of healthcare markets, as well as topical issues in mental health, the health workforce, integrated care, and universal healthcare initiatives, particularly in California.

History

On June 23, 1999, the Office of the Attorney General for California provided a $2 million endowment to Professor Richard M. Scheffler at the University of California, Berkeley, for the creation of the Nicholas C. Petris Center on Health Care Markets and Consumer Welfare. The research center was named after the late California State Senator Nicholas Petris, who advocated strongly on behalf of California consumers for affordable, accessible, and quality health care.

“As a state legislator for nearly three decades, Nick Petris was an strong advocate on behalf of consumers for affordable, accessible and quality health care,” said California Attorney General Bill Lockyer at the Center’s founding, “The new Petris Center will ensure that consumer-oriented research continues to be aggressively pursued and used to protect health care quality and affordability in California.” More information about the founding of the Petris Center can be found here.