What The Pitt Gets Right About the U.S. Health Care System
LDI Fellows Weigh in on the HBO Max Show, Describing Real Challenges From High Patient Bills to Assaults on Nurses in the ER
Our Mission
We connect researchers from across the University of Pennsylvania with a common mission: to improve health and health care by catalyzing collaborative, multidisciplinary research that influences policy and practice.
Featured Research Updates
LDI generates critical evidence to improve U.S. health care delivery, patient care, and health policy.
Hospital-at-Home: How to Reenergize This Key Program
These 10 Points Lay Out the Biggest Barriers – From Costs to Complex Rules – and the Reforms Needed to Put More Hospital Care in Homes Nationwide
How ‘The Talk’ Has Changed: Latino Families Prepare Kids for ICE Raids
As Immigration Arrests Surge and Deaths in ICE Custody Rise, Parents Turn ‘The Talk’ Into Emergency Plans—Covering What To Do if Families Get Separated
Outpatient Surgeries Still Grew After COVID, Reshaping Care
A New Study Confirms the Outpatient Surge and Suggests That Many Patients Will Be Left Behind
Health Care Affordability
Expert Insights
LDI Fellows’ AI Program Could Save Medicare Billions in Overpayments
Replacing Flawed Current Payment Methods With the Machine Learning Model “Franklin,” Might Thwart Upcoding and Favorable Enrollee Selection by Medicare Advantage Firms
Impact Report
Our commitment to driving positive change through transformative research powered a series of standout achievements in 2025. Explore how we turned evidence into action to shape smarter health policy.
Upcoming Events
Virtual Event
Medicaid After HR1: State Challenges and Policy Tradeoffs
A Conversation with Patricia Boozang, MPH, Lanhee Chen, PhD, and Benjamin Sommers, MD, PhD, moderated by Rachel M. Werner, MD, PhD
In-Person Event
LDI Fellow Workshop: How You Can Improve Your Media Presence as a Health Policy Researcher
Open to LDI Fellows only
Our Experts
Our 500+ Fellows are national experts and thought leaders who bridge all of Penn’s schools, the University of Pennsylvania Health System, and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Kelli Williams, MPH
- PhD Student, Epidemiology , Perelman School of Medicine
Ashwin Nathan, MD, MSHP
- Assistant Professor, Cardiovascular Medicine , Perelman School of Medicine
Charlotte Weiss, PhD, MSN
- Postdoctoral Fellow, NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health , Penn Nursing
Kiersten McCartney, DPT, PhD
- Postdoctoral Fellow, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation , Perelman School of Medicine
David Mandell, ScD
- Kenneth E. Appel Professor, Psychiatry , Perelman School of Medicine
- Director, Center for Mental Health , Perelman School of Medicine
Rachel French, PhD, RN
- Assistant Professor, Family and Community Health , Penn Nursing
Charlotte Woods-Hill, MD, MSHP
- Assistant Professor, Anesthesia and Critical Care , Perelman School of Medicine
Aaron Richterman, MD, MPH
- Assistant Professor, Infectious Disease , Perelman School of Medicine
- Assistant Professor, Medical Ethics and Health Policy , Perelman School of Medicine
What We Do
As Penn’s hub for health care delivery, health policy, and population health, we connect and amplify over 500 Fellows across the University, and train the next generation of researchers.
Fast Facts
$160M+
Awarded in External Grant Funding
11,300+
Journal Articles Published (2020–2024)
$400K+
Awarded in Research Grants from LDI