Research Professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, Research Professor, Gerald R Ford School of Public Policy and Research Professor, Health Management and Policy, School of Public Health

Biography
Dr. Levy’s research interests include the causes and consequences of lacking health insurance, evaluation of public health insurance programs,and the role of health literacy in explaining disparities in health outcomes. She is an associate director on the Health and Retirement Study, a long-running longitudinal study of health and economic dynamics at older ages. She is a past recipient of a Career Development Award (K01) from the National Institute on Aging to study health literacy and health disparities among the elderly.
Projects
Funded Research
Publications
- Cliff, Betsy Q.; Krenz, Christopher; West, Brady T.; Levy, Helen G.; Fendrick, A. Mark; Winkelman, Tyler N. A.; So, Jonathan; Fagerlin, Angela; Kullgren, Jeffrey T. (2019). Attitudes About Consumer Strategies Among Americans in High-deductible Health Plans. Medical Care.
- Levy, Helen G.; Buchmueller, Thomas; Nikpay, Sayeh (2019). The Impact of Medicaid Expansion on Household Consumption. Eastern Economic Journal, 45(1), 34-57.
- McKee, Michael M.; Choi, HwaJung; Wilson, Shelby; DeJonckheere, Melissa J.; Zazove, Philip; Levy, Helen G. (2018). Determinants of Hearing Aid Use Among Older Americans With Hearing Loss. The Gerontologist.
- Kullgren, Jeffrey T.; Cliff, Elizabeth Q.; Krenz, Christopher; West, Brady T.; Levy, Helen G.; Fendrick, Mark; Fagerlin, Angela (2018). Consumer behaviors among individuals enrolled in high-deductible health plans in the united states. JAMA Internal Medicine, 178(3), 424-426.
- Fusaro, Vincent A.; Levy, Helen G.; Shaefer, H. L. (2018). Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Lifetime Prevalence of Homelessness in the United States. Demography, 55(6), 2119-2128.
- Buchmueller, Thomas C.; Levy, Helen G. (2017). Health Reform in the Age of Trump. 23-33. In Brown, Chad P. (Ed.), Economics and Policy in the Age of Trump. CEPR Press:London.
- Swenson, Carolyn Weaver; Kamdar, Neil S.; Levy, Helen G.; Jr, Darrell A. Campbell; Morgan, Daniel M. (2017). Insurance Type and Major Complications After Hysterectomy. Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery, 23(1), 39-43.
- Davis, A. M.; Zheng, Kai; Liu, Yang; Levy, Helen G. (2017). Public Response to Obamacare on Twitter. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 19(5), e167.
- Sonnega, Amanda J.; Robinson, Kristen; Levy, Helen G. (2017). Home and Community-Based Service and Other Senior Service Use: Prevalence and Characteristics in a National Sample. Home health care services quarterly, 36(1), 16-28.
- Nikpay, Sayeh; Freedman, Seth; Levy, Helen G.; Buchmueller, Tom (2017). Effect of the Affordable Care Act Medicaid Expansion on Emergency Department Visits: Evidence From State-Level Emergency Department Databases. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 70(2), 215-225.e6.
- Ayanian, John Z.; Ehrlich, Gabriel M.; Grimes, Donald R.; Levy, Helen G. (2017). Economic Effects of Medicaid Expansion in Michigan. New England Journal of Medicine, 376, 407-410.
- Levy, Helen G.; Norton, Edward C.; Smith, Jeffrey A. (2017). Tobacco Regulation and Cost-Benefit Analysis: How Should We Value Foregone Consumer Surplus?. American Journal of Health Economics, 4(1), 1-25.
- Nikpay, Sayeh; Buchmueller, Thomas; Levy, Helen G. (2016). Affordable Care Act Medicaid Expansion Reduced Uninsured Hospital Stays In 2014. Health affairs, 35(1), 106-110.
- Hirth, Richard A.; Calónico, Sebastian; Gibson, Teresa B.; Levy, Helen G.; Smith, Jeffrey; Das, Anup (2016). Long-Term Health Spending Persistence among the Privately Insured in the US. Fiscal Studies, 37(3-4), 749-783.
- Buchmueller, Thomas C.; Levinson, Zachary M.; Levy, Helen G.; Wolfe, Barbara L. (2016). Effect of the Affordable Care Act on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Insurance Coverage. American Journal of Public Health, 106(8), 1416-1421.
- Levy, Helen G.; Buchmueller, Thomas C.; Nikpay, Sayeh (2016). Health Reform and Retirement. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences.
- Levy, Helen G.; Janke, Alex (2016). Health Literacy and Access to Care. Journal of health communication, 21(Suppl 1), 43-50.
- Mahmoudi, E.; Levy, Helen G. (2016). How Did Medicare Part D Affect Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Drug Coverage?. The journals of gerontology.Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences, 71(3), 581-589.
- Mahmoudi, Elham; Tarraf, Wassim; Maroukis, Brianna L.; Levy, Helen G. (2016). Does Medicare Managed Care Reduce Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Diabetes Preventive Care and Healthcare Expenditures?. American Journal of Managed Care, 22(10), e360-e367.
- Nikpay, Sayeh; Buchmueller, Thomas; Levy, Helen G.; Singh, Simone R. (2016). The Relationship Between Uncompensated Care and Hospital Financial Position: Implications of the ACA Medicaid Expansion for Hospital Operating Margins. Journal of Health Care Finance, 43(2), 73-89.
- Levy, Helen G. (2015). Income, Poverty, and Material Hardship among Older Americans. RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 1(1), 55-77.
- Baicker, K. and Levy, Helen G. (2015). Cost Sharing as a Tool to Drive Higher-Value Care. JAMA Internal Medicine, 175(3), 399-400.
- Baicker, K. and Levy, Helen G. (2015). How Narrow a Network is Too Narrow?. JAMA Internal Medicine, 175(3), 337-338.
- Hirth, Richard A.; Gibson, Teresa B.; Levy, Helen G.; Smith, Jeffrey A.; Calónico, Sebastian and Das, Anup (2015). New Evidence on the Persistence of Health Spending. Medical Care Research and Review, 72(3), 277-297.
- Leininger, Lindsey and Levy, Helen G. (2015). Child Health and Access to Medical Care. Future of Children, 25(1), 65-90.
- Nikpay, S.; Buchmueller, T. and Levy, Helen G. (2015). Early Medicaid Expansion in Connecticut Stemmed the Growth in Hospital Uncompensated Care. Health Affairs, 34(7), 1170-1179.
- Levy, Helen G.; Janke, A. T. and Langa, Kenneth M. (2015). Health Literacy and the Digital Divide among Older Americans. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 30(3), 284-289.
- Levy, Helen G. (2015). Assessing the Need for a New Household Panel Study: Health Insurance and Health Care. Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, 40(1-4), 341-356.
- Bagley, Nicholas and Levy, Helen G. (2014). Essential Health Benefits and the Affordable Care Act: Law and Process. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 39(2), 441-465.
- Baicker, Katherine and Levy, Helen G. (2013). Coordination Versus Competition in Health Care Reform. N Engl J Med, 369(9), 789-791.
- Buchmueller, Thomas; Carey, Colleen and Levy, Helen G. (2013). Will Employers Drop Health Insurance Coverage because of the Affordable Care Act?. Health Affairs, 32(9), 1522-1530.
- Levy, Helen G.; Ubel, Peter, A.; Dillard, A. J.; Weir, David R. and Fagerlin, A. (2013). Health Numeracy: The Importance of Domain in Assessing Numeracy. Medical Decision Making, 34(1), 107-115.
- Baicker, Katherine and Levy, Helen G. (2012). The Insurance Value of Medicare. New England Journal of Medicine, 367(19), 1773-1775.
- Levy, Helen G. (2012). Health Reform: Learning from Massachusetts. Inquiry, 49(4), 300-302.
- Leininger, Lindsey; Levy, Helen G. and Schanzenbach, Diane (2010). Consequences of SCHIP Expansions for Household Well-being. Forum for Health Economics & Policy, 13(1).
- Levy, Helen G. and Weir, David R. (2010). Take-Up of Medicare Part D: Results from the Health and Retirement Study. Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 65(4), 492-501.
- Gruber, J. and Levy, Helen G. (2009). The Evolution of Medical Spending Risk. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 23(4), 25-48.
- McLaughlin, C.; Levy, Helen G. and Quinn, B. (2009). Aspects of Health Reform: Introduction. Inquiry - Excellus Health Plan, 46(2), 182-186.
- Baicker, Katherine and Levy, Helen G. (2008). Employer Health Insurance Mandates and the Risk of Unemployment. Risk Management & Insurance Review, 11(1), 109-132.
- Levy, Helen G. and Meltzer, David (2008). The Impact of Health Insurance on Health. Annual Review of Public Health, 29, 399-409.
- Levy, Helen G. and DeLeire, Thomas (2008). What do People Buy when they Don’t Buy Health Insurance and what does that Say about Why they are Uninsured?. Inquiry, 45(4), 365-379.