Buchmueller appointed deputy assistant secretary, ASPE Office of Health Policy

Thomas Buchmueller, Ph.D., professor of business, has been appointed as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Health Policy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. The office is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

The Office of Health Policy provides a cross-cutting policy perspective that bridges Departmental programs, public and private sector activities, and the research community, in order to develop, analyze, coordinate and provide leadership on health policy issues. The office conducts policy, economic and budget analyses, assisting in the development and review of regulations, the development and formulation of budgets and legislation, and coordinating research, evaluation, and information dissemination on issues relating to health policy.

Buchmueller is a health economist whose research focuses mainly on economic and policy issues related to health insurance, including the relationship between health insurance and the labor market, the regulation of health insurance markets, disparities in health insurance coverage and access to care and health care reform.