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Kelly J. Devers, PhD, Named Senior Fellow in Health Care by NORC at the University of Chicago

Press Release

CHICAGO, July 26, 2017 — Kelly J. Devers, PhD, one of the nation’s foremost health services and policy research specialists has joined NORC at the University of Chicago as a senior fellow in the Health Care department.

In this position, Devers will be responsible for working with NORC colleagues on projects focused on the implementation and evaluation of health care provider payment and delivery system reforms designed to reduce cost and improve the quality of care for patients and the health of populations.

“We are delighted and proud that Kelly Devers, who has contributed enormously to the craft of health services research while serving in significant roles in government, university, and private sector research organizations, has chosen to join NORC as the next step in her highly productive career,” said Michael Davern, executive vice president of research at NORC. “Throughout her career, she has worked on some of the most pressing health policy issues. Kelly Devers has been a dedicated practitioner and thought leader in qualitative and mixed-methods research that addresses “how” and “why” interventions do or do not work to reduce health care costs and improve health and health care.”

Devers joins NORC from a position as vice president of the Center for Evaluation and Advanced Analytics at The Lewin Group, a health care consulting firm, where she specialized in research and analysis related topics, such as bundled payments, accountable care organizations (ACOs) and patient-centered medical homes for vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries, and their impacts on access, quality, and cost.

“There is no issue more important to the people of this nation than the availability, cost, and quality of health care,” said Devers. “At the heart of that concern is the evidence and insight so vital to policymakers as they make decisions about local, state, and national health policies and programs.”

In recent projects, Devers worked with the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) on a number of initiatives, including serving as the qualitative and mixed-methods task leader and senior adviser for the evaluation of the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model. That project is testing a new model of hospital payment for hip and knee replacements to encourage care coordination from the initial hospitalization through recovery and ultimately reduce cost while maintaining quality. She also served as the qualitative and mixed-methods task lead for CMMI’s Comprehensive End-Stage Renal Disease Care Model, designed to test the concept of ACOs designed specifically for people with end-stage renal disease. Previously, she served in leadership roles on CMMI’s Multi-Payer Advanced Primary Care Practice Demonstration Evaluation, as well as for several other major projects funded by the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.

Earlier in her career, she held a position at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and was awarded the Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service. She also was a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Scholar in Health Policy Research, an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, a senior researcher at the Center for Studying Health Systems Change, and a senior fellow at the Urban Institute.

Devers’ work has been widely published in major health services research and policy journals, with close to 50 peer-reviewed journal articles, an edited book, and numerous widely read issue briefs and reports. She also serves as a peer reviewer for federal agencies, foundations, and journal editorial Boards and is a frequent speaker on health policy issues.

She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and her master’s and PhD degrees from Northwestern University.

“We are delighted and proud that Kelly Devers, who has contributed enormously to the craft of health services research while serving in significant roles in government, university, and private sector research organizations, has chosen to join NORC as the next step in her highly productive career.”

Michael Davern

Executive Vice President

“We are delighted and proud that Kelly Devers, who has contributed enormously to the craft of health services research while serving in significant roles in government, university, and private sector research organizations, has chosen to join NORC as the next step in her highly productive career.”

About NORC at the University of Chicago

NORC at the University of Chicago conducts research and analysis that decision-makers trust. As a nonpartisan research organization and a pioneer in measuring and understanding the world, we have studied almost every aspect of the human experience and every major news event for more than eight decades. Today, we partner with government, corporate, and nonprofit clients around the world to provide the objectivity and expertise necessary to inform the critical decisions facing society.

www.norc.org

Contact: For more information, please contact Eric Young at NORC at young-eric@norc.org or (703) 217-6814 (cell).