Lorens Helmchen

Lorens A. Helmchen is an assistant professor in the Division of Health Policy and Administration of the School of Public Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago and holds a joint appointment at the Institute of Government and Public Affairs. He is currently on leave of absence and working with the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Professor Helmchen said he was drawn to IGPA by "the challenge of thinking about problems that are of current concern to policymakers and exploring a variety of solutions to these issues."

Dr. Helmchen’s research focuses on the optimal design of provider reimbursement and quality-revelation mechanisms in health care delivery. He is examining the effect of a pay-for-performance initiative on physicians’ practice patterns; the effect of consumer-directed health insurance plans on provider choice, health care utilization, and outcomes; and the impact of specialty hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers on the continued ability of general hospitals to provide community benefits.

In 2005, Dr. Helmchen co-authored the "Analysis of the State Reimbursement Levels Awarded to Mental Health and Developmentally Disabled Community Providers," which was commissioned by the Illinois General Assembly.

Dr. Helmchen earned a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago in 2004 and an undergraduate degree in economics from Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany.

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