Penn health economist on shaping Medicare’s future
Amol Navathe, professor of medical ethics and health policy at Penn Medicine and healthcare management at Wharton, is the new chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, the independent congressional agency that advises lawmakers on Medicare payment policy.
2 min. read
Medicare, which now covers more than 67 million people, faces persistent financing pressures; rapid changes in care delivery; and growing debate over how best to pay for care, encourage innovation, and protect beneficiaries.
Amol Navathe is the new chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.
These are the kinds of problems that Amol Navathe will tackle as the new chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, or MedPAC, the independent congressional agency that advises lawmakers on Medicare payment policy, access to care, quality, and other issues affecting the program. Navathe, a professor of health policy and medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine, healthcare management at the Wharton School, and a senior fellow at Penn’s Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, takes on the role at a pivotal moment for Medicare, charged with helping figure out how to sustain the program financially while preserving access and quality for millions of older adults and people with disabilities.
As chair, Navathe explains, “my responsibility is to help keep the commission focused on its core mission: providing Congress with rigorous, independent analysis and advice aimed at improving the Medicare program and the health and welfare of its beneficiaries.”
Navathe outlines the challenges ahead. “Financial sustainability is top of mind for me, especially as new technologies such as AI-based devices and services continue to emerge. The challenge will be balancing access to promising innovations with financial prudence for beneficiaries and taxpayers, such as AI technologies that autonomously provide health care services like cognitive-behavioral therapy to people with depression.”
“At the same time,” he adds, “I see an opportunity for Medicare policy to continue evolving in ways that support better care delivery like improving access to behavioral health care, driving improved outcomes, and long-term program sustainability.”
On the move: Water quality and antimicrobial resistance testing goes mobile
Penn researchers have developed a mobile field laboratory allowing them to test water quality and track antimicrobial resistance in and around San Cristóbal in the Galápagos.
Penn researchers Vanessa and Alexis North are studying one of the largest collections of Egyptian blue objects ever found in the ancient Near East, shedding new light on how the world’s first synthetic pigment may have traveled far beyond Egypt.
A new role for dental providers? Rethinking where vaccines are given
Vaccinations have traditionally been administered in primary care settings or pharmacies. However, for about a decade, some states have authorized dentists to administer vaccines, and many others did so during the COVID-19 pandemic. The effectiveness of this approach has led some countries and states to expand or consider expanding the role of dental providers in delivering routine vaccines, including those against COVID-19 and the human papillomavirus (HPV), and in providing vaccine education.
Penn student develops a way for computer chips to run more efficiently
Fluid Silicon, a platform from President’s Sustainability Prize winner Nhlanhla Mavuso, allows computer chips to continuously monitor their health and self-tune as their characteristics change. The technology has the potential to reduce energy usage in data centers and improve reliability in mission-critical applications.
