News & Bulletins Archive
In a new article in Health Services Research titled Evaluating a Predictive Model of Avoidable Hospital Events for Race- and Sex-Based Bias, Hilltop researchers Leigh Goetschius, Fei Han, Ruichen Sun, and Morgan Henderson—along with UMBC researcher Ian Stockwell—assessed a large, productionized predictive model of avoidable hospital (AH) events for bias based on patient race and sex.
In a new blog post written for AcademyHealth, published by AcademyHealth, and also published by The Hilltop Institute, Hilltop Interim Executive Director Alice Middleton discusses her pride in the accomplishments of the State University Partnership Learning Network (SUPLN) in its first decade—forging deep connections, sharing innovative approaches, and amplifying the real-world impact of its members’ work—and her vision for the network in the next decade—playing an even more critical role in sharing information and best practices as university researchers assist states to weather policy changes, public health crises, technology advances, and other unknowns in health care.
In a new article in Medical Care titled Behind the Curtain: Comparing Predictive Models Performance in 2 Publicly Insured Populations, Hilltop researchers Morgan Henderson, Leigh Goetschius, Fei Han, and Ruichen Sun—along with UMBC researcher Ian Stockwell—share the findings of a study they conducted on the inner workings of the Hilltop Pre-AH Model™, a large-scale predictive model that predicts the risk of avoidable hospitalizations and has been deployed in two distinct populations—Medicare and Medicaid—with a particular emphasis on adaptability issues.
Hilltop researchers Morgan Henderson, PhD, and Morgane Mouslim, DVM, SCM, have published an article in the August 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care titled Cross-Validation of Insurer and Hospital Price Transparency Data. The first research of its kind, the piece compares the two different federally mandated sources of public, freely available health services price transparency data (insurer and hospital) for prices for maternity-related services negotiated between Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi and 26 Mississippi hospitals.
In a new blog post written for AcademyHealth and Milbank Memorial Fund, published by AcademyHealth, and also published by The Hilltop Institute, former Hilltop Executive Director Cynthia H. Woodcock makes the case that the success of a state-university partnership depends not only on the relationship between the state agency and university research partner, but also on the relationship between the university research center and its university leadership. She then gives her reflections on relationship building based on Hilltop’s 30-year partnership with the Maryland Department of Health and her 11-year experience as Hilltop’s chief executive.
Hilltop staff presented at the 2024 AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting (ARM) held June 29 – July 2 in Baltimore. Participants included Alice Middleton, Dolapo Fakeye, Leigh Goetschius, MaryAnn Mood, Roberto Millar, Parker James, Fei Han, Christine Gill, and Morgane Mouslim.
The Hilltop Institute celebrated its 30th anniversary and honored its Executive Director Cynthia Woodcock upon her retirement at a special event on April 4, 2024. The event included a program titled State Health Policy: A Look Ahead and a reception attended by over 80 of Hilltop’s current and former employees, friends, and colleagues.
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Alice Middleton, JD, gave presentations at two major meetings this week. On April 9, she was a panelist in a workshop at the Financial Resilience Summit in Washington, DC. On April 10, she was one of three speakers at a session of the University of Baltimore-sponsored Rosenberg Dialogue Series, titled Fixing Unintended Pandemic Medicaid Policy Consequences: Lessons Learned and Insurance Coverage Implications for Recipients.
Hilltop continues to provide subject matter expertise as Mississippi lawmakers consider whether or how to expand Medicaid. Following up on the extensive study it conducted in 2022 that assessed the costs and savings to Mississippi if it were to expand Medicaid and recent testimony before the Mississippi House Medicaid Committee, Hilltop is continuing to conduct ad hoc analyses on various topics that emerge in the legislative deliberations. Hilltop has produced two follow-up explainers and provided subject matter expertise for a recent article in Mississippi Today that is following the deliberations.
In a recently released podcast, The Hilltop Institute’s Analytics and Research team discuss their work on predictive modeling in Maryland.
Hilltop Principal Data Scientist Morgan Henderson, PhD, and Executive Director Cynthia Woodcock, MBA, presented Hilltop research on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, to the Mississippi House Medicaid Committee. The research—a 2021 economic analysis of Medicaid expansion in Mississippi—was commissioned by the Center for Mississippi Health Policy, a nonprofit, non-partisan organization.
For media inquiries, contact Marsha Willis.
Hilltop Executive Director Cynthia Woodcock has announced her retirement from UMBC effective May 1, 2024. Hilltop has been her professional home since 2004, and she has served as Hilltop’s Executive Director since 2013. UMBC Vice Provost Antonio Moreira will lead a national search for Hilltop’s next Executive Director. Alice Middleton, Hilltop’s Deputy Director, will serve as Interim Executive Director after Cynthia retires on May 1 and until her successor is on board.
For media inquiries, please contact Marsha Willis.
The Hilltop Institute is proud to introduce the Price Transparency State Profiles, an innovative public resource offering centralized access to hospital pricing data as well as links to state laws on hospital price transparency. In response to the Hospital Price Transparency Rule, enacted as of January 1, 2021, requiring hospitals to disclose machine-readable data files of standard charges on their websites, Hilltop’s initiative aims to make hospital pricing data more accessible and user-friendly to researchers, policymakers, and the public.
Hilltop Executive Director Cynthia Woodcock, MBA, and Principal Data Scientist Morgan Henderson, PhD, provided comments in a feature story on STAT titled HCA Doctors Say Its Cost-Cutting is Endangering Appalachian Patients—A Warning for the Whole U.S. Health Care System. The article discusses the aftermath of HCA’s acquisition of Mission Hospital in Ashville, North Carolina. Woodcock and Henderson commented on issues related to Mission’s pricing for services since the acquisition.
Hilltop Policy Analyst Parker James, MPP, participated on a panel at the National Alliance of State & Territorial AIDS Director’s (NASTAD) National HIV and Hepatitis Technical Assistance Meeting on October 12, 2023, in Washington, DC. Titled Data Sharing between Surveillance and Medicaid Population Based Data Use, the panel presentation focused on overcoming obstacles in data sharing. James’ presentation focused on Maryland’s successful collaboration among HIV Surveillance, Medicaid, and Hilltop in sharing HIV viral suppression data to manage and improve the quality of care. The work is funded by the Health Resources and Service Administration’s Special Projects of National Significance Program, which supports the development of innovative models of HIV care and treatment.