Department of Health Policy

Health Policy students in the VCU Public Health Student Association partnered with Virginia Public Health Association to support public health legislation.  The VCU School of Public Health (SOPH) leveraged its proximity to the Virginia State Capitol this winter when Healthcare Policy and Research Ph.D. students and members of the VCU Public Health Student Association (PHSA) organized a joint Legislative Day with […]

Based in the School of Public Health, the center’s research will help policymakers address issues related to health care access, quality and cost for members of Medicaid. The Virginia Commonwealth University School of Public Health has established the Office of Medicaid Evaluation (OME) to more formally provide analysis and guidance on state and federal Medicaid programs. The OME officially […]

Rural communities are particularly hard-hit, and the research could point to workforce initiatives. Nearly half of Virginia’s neighborhoods don’t have enough nearby primary care physicians for their residents, with rural communities being hit hardest by workforce shortages, according to a new study led by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University.  Using anonymized health care claims data, […]

The Department of Health Policy recently prepared an evaluation report for the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) that examined the effects of the expanded Medicaid Adult Dental Benefit on Emergency Department utilization in Virginia hospitals for non-traumatic dental visits. Presented to DMAS in March 2025, the report was authored by Department of Health […]

On Tuesday, February 25, Vimbai Dihwa, a Ph.D. student, received the Black History in the Making award from VCU’s Department of African American Studies. The award, established in 1983 by Daryl Dance, Ph.D. to honor the achievements of African American students, has recognized over 550 students since then, with 62 more added this week. Dihwa, a student […]

Vimbai Dihwa is a Ph.D. candidate in the Healthcare Policy & Research program in the Department of Health Policy. She received both her Bachelor’s Degree, in Biology with a Chemistry minor, and her Master of Business Administration from Rosemont College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. However, she originally comes from Zimbabwe and completed high school in […]

Applications are now open for the VCU School of Public Health’s Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) in Health Policy. By Hannah Wente, originally published at VCU School Of Public Health Blog This fall, students in the School of Public Health’s M.P.H. program will have the chance to choose a new concentration –  health policy.  The […]

For a new article published by Health Services Research, several VCU Department of Health Policy faculty members, students, and alums collaborated with other faculty from the VCU School Of Public Health and several officials from the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) to examine the relationships between healthcare use and food and housing insecurity […]

Earlier this week, the Department of Health Policy received some great news: the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia had reclassified the Department’s Healthcare Policy & Research Ph.D. program to reflect the program’s alignment with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields as designated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Department of Health […]

The Department of Health Policy in the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Public Health invites applications from health services researchers for a full-time 12-month, tenure-eligible, open rank faculty member. The Department of Health Policy is a driving force that promotes health equity through multidisciplinary research, education, training, and service. We identify and address behavioral, social, […]