The best of Health Affairs Scholar 2024

As we welcome 2025, we reflect on the milestones and achievements that shaped Health Affairs Scholar in 2024. Among the highlights, we introduced our first Calls for Papers, focusing on the critical topics of: Global Aging, Intersections of Social Policies and Health, and Policy Options for the 340B Discount Program. These ongoing series continue to invite submissions, fostering meaningful discourse on pressing policy issues.

The journal also launched its inaugural Featured Paper Series, Health Workforce Issues and Challenges in the Post-Pandemic Era, with contributions from each of the nine federally funded Health Workforce Research Centers. Building on this momentum, three additional Featured Paper Series are set to publish in 2025, each exploring distinct, timely topics and supported by different sponsoring organizations. The papers below kick-off two of these series, with the introduction to the third series on Emergency Room Care coming soon.

• Health And Political Economy: Building A New Common Sense In The United States by Victor Roy, Darrick Hamilton, and Dave Chokshi
• Evidence To Inform Biopharmaceutical Policy: Call For Research On The Impact Of Public Policies On Investment In Drug Development by Sandra Barbosu, Kirsten Axelsen, and Stephen Ezell

In addition to these exciting new initiatives, we’re pleased to share that the journal is now indexed in the Web of Science, as well as PubMed Central, The Directory of Open Access Journals, and Google Scholar.

As we look back on a successful year, we also want to highlight the top ten most read papers published in 2024. These papers reflect some of the timeliest issues of 2024, including contraceptive access and use in the post-Dobbs era, mapping pharmacy deserts across the country, prior authorization burdens and solutions, and much more.

1. Has the Fall of Roe Changed Contraceptive Access and Use? New Research from Four US States Offers Critical Insights by Megan L Kavanaugh and Amy Friedrich-Karnik

In this brief report, Megan Kavanaugh and Amy Friedrich-Karnik examine the broad impact the overturning of Roe v. Wade has had on contraceptive access and use. The report highlights decreased access to quality contraceptive care across four states and emphasizes the need for evidence-based policies and programs to better support people’s contraceptive needs in the post-Dobbs era.

2. The Evolution and Scope of Medicaid Section 1115 demonstrations to address nutrition: a US survey by Erika Hanson and others

Medicaid Section 1115 demonstration waivers offer states the opportunity to pilot coverage for nutrition-based services to address health disparities. Erika Hanson and coauthors provide insight into the evolution and current landscape of food-based initiatives supported by these demonstrations across 19 states.

3. Return On Investments In Social Determinants Of Health Interventions: What Is The Evidence? by Sayeh Nikpay, Zhanji Zhang, Pinar Karaca-Mandic

Sayeh Nikpay and coauthors quantify the return on investment for interventions focused on combating food and housing insecurity, emphasizing the role these estimates play in encouraging future investment by health plans and other private actors in the health care space.

4. Why Does The Cost Of Employer-Sponsored Coverage Keep Rising? Salpy Kanimian, Vivian Ho

Salpy Kanimian and Vivian Ho explore the rising gap between health insurance costs and wages, highlighting the role hospitals play in driving premiums. Between 2006 and 2023, hospital price index rose faster than insurance premiums, and hospitals consistently maintained high profit margins than insurers.

5. Life Cycle Of Private Equity Investments In Physician Practices: An Overview Of Private Equity Exits by Yashaswini Singh, Megha Reddy, Jane M Zhu

Yashaswini Singh and colleagues explore the often rapid turnover of private equity investments in physician practices. Their analysis reveals that private equity firms increase affiliated practices by 595% on average in just three years, raising concerns about the long-term sustainability of care and workforce investments.

6. Locations and Characteristics of Pharmacy Deserts in the United States: A Geospatial Study by Rachel Wittenauer and coauthors

Rachel Wittenauer and coauthors use pharmacy address data and Census Bureau surveys to map pharmacy deserts across the United States. Their findings show that 4.7% of Americans in both rural and urban communities live in these deserts, demonstrating an urgent need to improve access to pharmaceutical services.

7. Perceptions Of Prior Authorization Burdens And Solutions by Nikhil R Sahni and coauthors

Nikhil R. Sahni and colleagues examine the perceived challenges related to prior authorization processes and the barriers that impede the adoption of automated solutions including the use of artificial intelligence.

8. Balancing Innovation And Affordability In Anti-Obesity Medications: The Role Of An Alternative Weight-Maintenance Program by David D Kim, Jennifer H Hwang, Mark Fendrick

Anti-obesity medications have garnered significant attention for their effectiveness, but their high price poses a major challenge to accessibility. Using a policy simulation model, David Kim, Jennifer Hwang, and Mark Fendrick evaluate the impact of an economical weight-maintenance program after weight loss plateau as an alternative to continuous medication use.

9. Infant Mortality In Ghana: Investing In Health Care Infrastructure And Systems by Danielle Poulin and coauthors

A policy inquiry by Danielle Poulin and coauthors provides recommendations for policymakers to address the persistently high rates of infant and neonatal mortality in Ghana, despite efforts to improve financial accessibility to care. The authors suggest that a systems approach is needed to minimize barriers to pre- and post-natal care, including investment in medical facility and transportation infrastructure, increased workforce development, and improvement in claims reimbursement.

10. Physicians Working With Physician Assistants And Nurse Practitioners: Perceived Effects On Clinical Practice by Xiaochu Hu and coauthors

A national survey of US physicians reveals that most view working with physician assistants and nurse practitioners as positively impacting their clinical practice. Physicians in medical schools and with higher incomes were particularly likely to report benefits, while those in specialties with higher women’s representation had lower ratings.

_{Featured image by Viridiana Rivera via Pexels.}