Global Health Economics
Global Health Economics in the Health Systems Program
Our global health economics work is focused on applying economic thinking and tools to the health challenges faced by low- and middle-income countries. Our faculty have expertise in a range of areas, including health care financing, economic evaluation, behavioral economics, contingent valuation, econometric methods, impact evaluation of health programs, and economic development. Faculty have rich experience working in a range of LMICs and actively engage with global development institutions such as the World Bank and World Health Organization, as well as national governments. We apply economic methods to ensure that health systems in resource-poor contexts can serve their populations in an efficient, effective, and affordable manner.
Our faculty use applied skills in economics and econometrics to address a wide range of health issues, such as aging, chronic conditions, access to rehabilitation services, injury prevention, and price transparency and gouging in drug prices. Our faculty have experience in evaluating the broader economic impact of vaccines and vaccination programs, estimating disease burden, incentive design for the health workforce, and researching ways to equitably improve access to affordable health services in resource-poor areas.
Examples of Latest Projects
Vaccine Economics Research for Sustainability & Equity (VERSE): The VERSE project aims to generate policy- and decision-maker centric statistical and model-based toolkits using cutting-edge methodologies to measure the costs, economic impact, return-on-investment, and equity of vaccine and other public health programs.
Future Health Spending and Treatment Patterns in Latin America and the Caribbean: This project examines the challenge LAC countries face in balancing their universal health coverage aspirations with the need to manage rising health expenditures in the future.
Modeling Dynamic Disease-Behavior Feedbacks for Improved Epidemic Prediction and Response: This project is multi-disciplinary effort to bring together expertise in epidemiology, mathematical biology, systems engineering, economics, and decision science at Johns Hopkins University to develop a new integrated modeling framework that combines traditional epidemiological models of disease spread with economic models of individual decision-making.
Arnold Foundation Project: Faculty are exploring the role of trust on local and federal government on preventive behaviors such using using mask, social distance and hand washing and vaccination during COVID-19.
Latest News
Johns Hopkins Researchers Receive Grant to Incorporate Human Behavior into Infectious Disease Models
BSPH News | September 2022
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University received a $1 million multi-disciplinary modeling grant from the National Science Foundation to improve the accuracy of infectious disease models by incorporating human behavior into the models. The grant is a cross-University grant that incorporates expertise in economic theory, sociology, human behavior, and systems engineering. The project will be led by experts from the Bloomberg School of Public Health, Whiting School of Engineering, Kennedy Krieger School of Arts & Sciences, and School of Medicine.
New Project: Mobile App to Help Increase Healthy Options in East Baltimore Corner Stores
BSPH News | August 2022
A new app developed by faculty and students at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health aims to increase access to healthy foods available at local corner stores in East Baltimore.
Measuring equity in vaccination coverage beyond socioeconomic status: Launch of the VERSE Equity Toolkit
Immunization Economics | April 2022
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have developed a new standardized toolkit to assess equity in vaccine coverage. The VERSE Equity Toolkit compares the level of vaccine coverage against the level of equity and quantifies the influence of key sociodemographic factors to inequity.
Meet our global health economics faculty
Antonio Trujillo, PhD, MPP, is a health economist working to improve access to medicines and the lives of seniors with chronic conditions around the globe.
Bryan Patenaude, ScD '17, MA, researches the sustainability, efficiency, and equity of public health programs and health systems in low- and lower-middle-income countries.
Andres Vecino, MD, PhD '16, MSc, uses economics theory and methods to improve health systems in lower and middle-income countries with a focus on Latin America.
Krishna D. Rao, PhD '04, MSc, finds ways to improve access to quality health services and financing of health care in low and middle-income countries.
Featured Publications and Reports
Financing and funding gaps for 16 vaccines across 94 low- and middle-income countries, 2011–30
Health Affairs | January 2023
Economic impact of vaccine safety incident in Ukraine: The economic case for safety system improvement
Vaccine | January 2023
The price paradox of biosimilar-like long-acting insulin
The American Journal of Managed Care | November 2022
The Baltimore Urban Food Distribution (BUD) App: Study protocol to assess the feasibility of a food systems intervention
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health | July 2022
Trajectories of prices in generic drug markets: What can we infer from looking at trajectories rather than average prices?
Health Economics Review | July 2022