Dr. Michael Plotzke is a senior health economist with expertise in the area of Medicare payment policy, the organization of healthcare providers and quality measurement. His work typically involves the analysis of large datasets such as Medicare claims, assessment and enrollment data. Dr. Plotzke serves as principal investigator for multiple projects with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. On the “Home Health Prospective Payment System and Hospice: Analysis Support and Monitoring” project, Dr. Plotzke leads a team of researchers in analyzing trends in Medicare hospice and home health usage and constructing large-scale payment reform options for both benefits. Dr. Plotzke also leads the “Evaluation of the Medicare Care Choices Model” project that evaluates a new payment model for end-of-life care that is being tested with 141 hospice providers. This project involves analysis of existing administrative data and collection of new data through surveys of caregivers, surveys of hospice providers and in-depth case studies of hospice providers participating in the model.
Dr. Plotzke publishes research in a variety of journals, including JAMA Internal Medicine, The New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Palliative Medicine, Home Health Care Management & Practice, Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, Journal of Health Economics, Health Services Research, Health Economics and Forum for Health Economics & Policy.
Education
- Ph.D., Economics, Washington University