Our Research in the Media

On October 2nd, 2024, Richard Scheffler was awarded the Emeriti Association’s “Emeriti of the Year” Award, alongside Michael Buckland. Both recipients have made significant contributions to their fields after retirement and continue to have a major influence on academic and policy discussions in their fields.

Read more about the Emeritus of the Year event here.

Richard Scheffler is awarded a fellowship award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science for his distinguished contributions to the fields of health economics, competition in health care, and the development and implementation of domestic and global public health policy.

Becker’s Hospital Review article shares that Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, have a history of challenging major healthcare corporations. However, health policy experts are unclear about how forcefully they would pursue these efforts at the national level if elected. Richard Scheffler, PhD, as noted in the article, suggests that healthcare conglomerates using their market power to raise prices should be concerned under this administration.

Read the full Becker’s Hospital Review here.

Currently, both Democratic and Republican politicians are focusing on combating health care conglomerates that they believe drive up costs and limit access. The health care industry’s significant economic influence often makes it challenging for politicians to enforce strict regulations. As health care costs remain a critical issue in the 2024 presidential race, both Harris and Walz’s previous actions suggest they might continue to challenge corporate power, although how forcefully remains uncertain. Richard Scheffler, quoted in the article, explains that health care conglomerates who are using their market power to raise prices should be concerned under a Harris-Walz administration.

Read the full Washington Post article here.

During her time as California’s Attorney General from 2011 to 2017, Kamala Harris investigated concentration in healthcare markets, supporting the work for her successor, Xavier Becerra, to challenge anticompetitive behavior by Sutter Health.

Read the full article here. Visit the Health Affairs article here.

A NIHCM (National Institute for Health Care Management) Foundation article features a study conducted by Ola Abdelhad under the Petris Center. The article discusses growth in private equity firm acquisition of physician practices, raising concern about the impact on healthcare market competition, quality, and pricing.

Click here to read the full article on the NIHCM website.

In a recent article from the WSJ, Dan Arnold, Research Director at the Petris Center, is quoted for his paper on the impacts of cross-market hospital mergers on commercial prices and measures of quality. The WSJ article leads the discussion on how hospital mergers have led to higher prices and no significant improvement to patient care.

Click here to view the WSJ article and read Dan Arnold’s paper on the impacts of cross-market hospital mergers.

On April 24th, 2024, the Petris Center celebrated its 25th anniversary celebration at UC Berkeley’s Faculty Club with dinner, speeches, and a toast to Richard Scheffler, the founder of the Nicolas C. Petris Center. The attendees of the anniversary dinner celebrated the many accomplishments of the Petris Center and enjoyed a recorded video from California’s Attorney General, Rob Bonta, who recognized and honored the center’s research.

View California’s Attorney General, Rob Bonta’s, speech, the anniversary celebration program, and more pictures from the event.