R. Tamara Konetzka, PhD, is the Louis Block Professor of Public Health Sciences in the Department of Public Health Sciences, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Medicine, Section of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine. She is an internationally recognized expert in the health economics of long-term and post-acute care. Her research focuses on the incentives created by health care policy, including payment policy, and their effects on quality of care. She has been the PI on numerous major federal research grants, leading to significant advances in knowledge of the drivers of nursing home quality, how public reporting of quality changes the behavior of providers and consumers, and the unintended consequences of home-based long-term and post-acute care. In May 2020 and again in March 2021, she testified before the U.S. Senate on COVID-19 and nursing homes. Konetzka is an appointed member of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), serves on several editorial boards, and is Editor in Chief of Medical Care Research and Review.
University of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia VA
Post-doctoral fellowship - Health Economics
2004
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
PhD - Health Policy and Administration (Health Economics)
2003
University of Pennsylvania
AM - Economics
1992
Outcomes After Community Discharge From Skilled Nursing Facilities: The Role of Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services.
Outcomes After Community Discharge From Skilled Nursing Facilities: The Role of Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services. J Appl Gerontol. 2024 Oct; 43(10):1536-1543.
PMID: 38581163
Association of Staffing Instability With Quality of Nursing Home Care.
Association of Staffing Instability With Quality of Nursing Home Care. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 01 03; 6(1):e2250389.
PMID: 36626170
Association of COVID-19 Vaccination Rates of Staff and COVID-19 Illness and Death Among Residents and Staff in US Nursing Homes.
Association of COVID-19 Vaccination Rates of Staff and COVID-19 Illness and Death Among Residents and Staff in US Nursing Homes. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 12 01; 5(12):e2249002.
PMID: 36580329
Predicting Hospitalization among Medicaid Home- and Community-Based Services Users Using Machine Learning Methods.
Predicting Hospitalization among Medicaid Home- and Community-Based Services Users Using Machine Learning Methods. J Appl Gerontol. 2023 02; 42(2):241-251.
PMID: 36164857
Associations Between Daily Nurse Staffing Levels and Daily Hospitalizations and ED Visits in Nursing Homes.
Associations Between Daily Nurse Staffing Levels and Daily Hospitalizations and ED Visits in Nursing Homes. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2022 11; 23(11):1793-1799.e3.
PMID: 35948066
Trends In Medicaid Home And Community-Based Services Waivers For Older Adults.
Trends In Medicaid Home And Community-Based Services Waivers For Older Adults. Health Aff (Millwood). 2022 08; 41(8):1176-1181.
PMID: 35914198
Beyond Compliance: A More Integrated Public Health Approach To Outbreaks In Nursing Homes And Other Disasters.
Beyond Compliance: A More Integrated Public Health Approach To Outbreaks In Nursing Homes And Other Disasters. Health Aff (Millwood). 2022 06; 41(6):831-837.
PMID: 35666972
Reforming Nursing Home Financing, Payment, and Oversight.
Reforming Nursing Home Financing, Payment, and Oversight. N Engl J Med. 2022 05 19; 386(20):1869-1871.
PMID: 35551508
Estimating the Impact of Medicaid Expansion and Federal Funding Cuts on FQHC Staffing and Patient Capacity.
Estimating the Impact of Medicaid Expansion and Federal Funding Cuts on FQHC Staffing and Patient Capacity. Milbank Q. 2022 06; 100(2):504-524.
PMID: 35411969
Daily Variation in Nursing Home Staffing and Its Association With Quality Measures.
Daily Variation in Nursing Home Staffing and Its Association With Quality Measures. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 03 01; 5(3):e222051.
PMID: 35285921
Appointed Member
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC)
2023 - -
Invited Testimony on COVID-19 and Nursing Homes
US Senate Finance Committee
2021 - -
Invited Testimony on COVID-19 and Nursing Homes,
US Senate Special Committee on Aging
2020
Member, Committee on the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes
National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
2020 - -
Invited member, Five-Star Quality Rating System Technical Expert Panel (TEP)
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
2014 - -