Atlantic States

Research Brief

Florida's Middle School Reading Coaches: What Do They Do? Are They Effective?

This research brief reports the results of a study examining the implementation and effectiveness of a middle school reading coach program in Florida.

Report

Supporting Literacy Across the Sunshine State: A Study of Florida Middle School Reading Coaches

Presents results from a RAND evaluation of the implementation and impact of the reading coach program in Florida middle schools.

Journal Article

Access to Appointments Based on Insurance Status in Washington, D.C.

Using a hypothetical emergency patient requiring close follow-up, D.C. providers were queried by phone to evaluate accessibility. The rate of privately insured receiving appointments was 71%, with Medicaid fee-for-service 36.6% and uninsured 13%.

Report

Assessing NYPD’s Firearm Training and Firearm Discharge Investigations

More opportunities for thorough training, closer monitoring of lower-rated police officers, and incorporating non-lethal devices can help further reduce the already minute probability that an NYPD officer fires their weapon.

Journal Article

Nonprice Competition and Quality of Care in Managed Care: The New York SCHIP Market

Finds a negative association between nonprice competition and quality of care in managed care plans in the New York SCHIP market. Pricing policy is likely a constraint on quality production, though it may not be interpreted as a causal relationship.

Report

Issues and Performance in the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation System

Examines the performance of Pennsylvania's workers' compensation system, the major policy issues the system faces, and options that the commonwealth might consider to address these issues.

Research Brief

Workers' Compensation in Pennsylvania: How is the System Performing? How Should It Be Reformed?

This research brief examines the performance of the Pennsylvania workers' compensation system in terms of costs and effectiveness and suggests possible reforms for the future.

Report

Economic Progress of Allegheny County Could be Enhanced by Government Consolidation

The City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania could enhance the economic progress of the region if its governments are consolidated, although evidence of such gains in other consolidations is mixed.

Journal Article

Crowd-out in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP): Incidence, Enrollee Characteristics and Experiences, and Potential Impact on New York's SCHIP

Most movement from private to public insurance in New York was not crowd-out from the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Under current program structure in New York, crowd-out concerns should not dampen enthusiasm for SCHIP.

Journal Article

Physical Restraint Initiation in Nursing Homes and Subsequent Resident Health

Examines whether physical restraint initiation is associated with subsequent lower physical or mental health in nursing home residents. Finds a substantial association between restraint initiation and subsequent adverse health consequences.

Journal Article

Regionalization in Local Public Health Systems: Public Health Preparedness in the Washington Metropolitan Area

Most public health preparedness planning and response activities in the D.C. area are the result of voluntary self-organization through both governmental and nongovernmental organizations. Including all government agencies in planning is a challenge.

Journal Article

PTSD in Latino Patients: Illness Beliefs, Treatment Preferences, and Implications for Care

Latino patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often report feeling sad, anxious, nervous, or fearful. Most expressed their desire to receive mental health treatment and preferred psychotherapy over psychotropic medications.

Journal Article

The Collaborative Advantage

Journal Article

Are High-Quality Cardiac Surgeons Less Likely to Operate on High-Risk Patients Compared to Low-Quality Surgeons? Evidence from New York State

Finds that high-risk coronary artery bypass graft patients are significantly more likely to receive care from high-quality surgeons compared with lower-risk patients.

Report

Value-Added Assessment in Practice

To encourage and facilitate data-driven decisionmaking, many states and districts have begun providing staff with information from value-added assessment systems—collections of complex statistical techniques that use multiple years of test-score data to estimate the causal effects of individual schools or teachers on student learning.

News Release

RAND Presents Research Award to Economists from Carnegie Mellon University

The RAND Corporation has presented the first Victor R. Fuchs Research Award to a team from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for publishing the best research paper with the potential to spawn new research in an underdeveloped area of health economics or health policy.

Commentary

The Limits of Average Test Scores

State test scores provide one useful piece of information to parents, school and governmental officials, and other taxpayers... But while this type of reporting provides one way of judging school quality, other information is needed to understand how well schools are actually educating their students, writes Laura Hamilton.

Journal Article

The Response of Physician Groups to P4P Incentives

The authors found an association between P4P incentives and the use of quality improvement initiatives.

News Release

RAND Receives $6 Million Grant to Evaluate Math Curriculum of Carnegie Learning

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded the RAND Corporation a $6 million grant to conduct a five-year study of the effectiveness of a technology-based mathematics curriculum created by Carnegie Learning, Inc., of Pittsburgh.

Commentary

Think It Through on Tests

While testing can serve a valuable purpose, it can only do so if: the tests are designed to measure complex, important content; safeguards are developed to address harmful effects on students; and the tests are used as one part of a comprehensive strategy for producing more-qualified graduates, writes Laura Hamilton.