phd health economics germany

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Hamburg Center for Health Economics

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for health care

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Interdisciplinarity

Economics & Medical Sciences

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Celebration for graduates and alumni 2024

On Friday, May 3, 2024, this year's graduates of the Master of Science Health Economics & Health Care Management will be given a ceremonial farewell at HCHE. The event will take place in the presence of the program directors as well as family members and other HCHE members and will also be combined with an alumni...

André Hajek world's leading expert on "loneliness"

Professor André Hajek from the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf/HCHE leads the global ranking of experts on "loneliness" on the web portal expertscape. The Hamburg-based scientist has been researching the topic of "loneliness" for several years and is in first place in the international ranking of the US web...

Photo: Mediaserver Hamburg/Martin Elsen

Call for Papers for 9th BEH Workshop

The HCHE invites to the 9th Workshop in Behavioral and Experimental Health Economics on October 7th to 8th, 2024 in Hamburg. The event is being hosted by the Behavioural Experiments in Health Network. The workshop brings together economists and behavioral scientists who apply behavioral-economics insights and experimental...

Photo: dggö, Markus Scholz

Malte Griebenow receives dggö science prize

At the dggö 2024 annual meeting, HCHE member Dr. Malte Griebenow was awarded the dggö Science Prize. He received the award for his paper “Should physicians team up to treat chronic diseases?” (published in the Journal of Health Economics), in which he found that treating chronically ill patients in medical teams is superior...

HCHE Summer School 2024

From July 15 to 27, 2024, the HCHE is once again offering its Summer School in Health Economics. In two intensive course weeks, M.Sc. students, PhD students and practitioners with a university degree in economics will learn about various areas of health economics and get insights into current research. The program is...

Lecture program for summer semester 2024 published

The HCHE research seminar starts for the summer semester in mid-April. Seven lectures will be offered by national and international scientists. Prof. Thomas Siedler from the University of Potsdam will kick off on 15.04.2024, speaking about air pollution and its effects on health outcomes in Germany. Other topics range from...

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Language requirements, program features.

• List of Universities

2742 Study programs

Study Health Economics in Germany: 6 Universities with 5 English Degree Programs

All important info for international students in germany (2024/2025).

Health Economics is the strategic nexus of health and economic principles. This vital field examines how healthcare resources are allocated, assessing the cost-effectiveness of medical interventions and the behavior of healthcare providers and patients. Delving into topics like health insurance, health outcomes, and policy decisions, students gain a holistic understanding of the economic factors impacting health systems. By mastering concepts of cost-benefit analysis and market dynamics, learners are poised to influence health policies and practices. As they venture into Health Economics, students can aspire to roles as health policy analysts, economic consultants, or health systems planners, driving efficiency and equity in healthcare systems globally.

Study Programs in English

Universities

Universities in International Rankings

€ 0 (3 programs for EU citizens/Non-EU)

€ 5,700 per semester (1 program for EU citizens/Non-EU)

Winter Semester

between April 30 and July 15

Summer Semester

between and

Top-ranked German Universities in Health Economics

public University

No. of Students: approx. 43,000 students

Program Fees: € 0 (per semester)

No. of Students: approx. 53,000 students

Program Fees: € 0 - € 4,200 (per semester)

Tuition Fees

3 english degree programs for health economics in germany.

TU Dortmund University / Ruhr-Universität Bochum / University of Duisburg-Essen Dortmund / Bochum / Essen

Econometrics.

Hochschule Fresenius - University of Applied Sciences Wiesbaden

International health economics & pharmacoeconomics.

Universität Hamburg Hamburg

Health economics & health care management.

Application Deadlines

Winter Semester 2024/2025

Summer Semester 2024

Winter Semester 2025/2026

Open Programs

Application Modes

Application process, 2 english degree programs for health economics in germany.

University of Cologne Cologne

Health economics, double master's programme in health economics and management.

TOEFL Scores

Cambridge Levels

6 (1 program )

87 (1 program )

B2 First (FCE) (1 program )

6.5 (3 programs )

100 (1 program )

C2 Proficiency (CPE) (2 programs )

4-4 semesters

→ View all programs with online courses

Master of Science

Winter intake

Summer intake

Winter & Summer intake

List of all German Universities offering English-taught Study Programs in Health Economics

Hochschule Fresenius - University of Applied Sciences

Program Fees: € 5,280 - € 5,700

M.Sc. (Master of Science)

Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Program Fees: € 0

TU Dortmund University

University of Cologne

Program Fees: € 0 - € 4,200

University of Duisburg-Essen

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Institute of Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics 

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Health Economics and Health Systems Research Unit

Learn more about the health economic research focus of the Institute of Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics at the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin.

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• Health Economics and Health System Research Unit

Coordinator: Thomas Reinhold, MSc, PhD

Health and health care were marked by a plethora and euphoria of the feasible in Germany a long time. Most actors in the health care system now accept the fact that these values have increasingly to subordinate to the financial feasibility. This development led to the establishment of health economics as a recent research area in Germany. A development that was long overdue as economists and demographists stated for a long time as the development of the German health care system dates back decades. Health economic research is important, especially for a successful further development of the health care system and a reasonable allocation of resources. For that reason the results from health economic research have to be integrated into the current progress of the health care system. These results include information about costs of illnesses, which are relevant for prioritising in the process of decision-making, the cost effects of therapies resp. The interaction of costs and effects, the so-called cost-effectiveness. Recent health policy decisions suggest that costs and utilities of medical treatments will continue to play a significant role in the future.

UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE

Faculty of management, economics and social sciences cologne graduate school in management, economics and social sciences, phd programme in economics.

The Cologne Graduate School (CGS) in Management, Economics, and Social Sciences offers a doctoral (PhD) programme with an integrated M.Sc. Economic Research. It consists of two stages:

• The first stage of the programme is the two-years M.Sc. Economic Research. It prepares students for high-level research in economics. It is fully taught in English.
• In the second stage, PhD students work on research projects for their dissertation and interact with other PhD students and faculty members in workshops, seminars, and summer schools.

The PhD Programme in Economics offers education, funding and supervision for research in all major fields of economics and related fields in management. It is a challenging and rigorous full-time programme in a friendly, supportive environment dedicated to excellence in teaching and research. Taking part in the graduate programme prepares students for academic positions at universities and institutions around the world as well as for top-level positions in internationally-orientated companies.

Applications for the graduated program can be either for the first stage (bachelor students) or for the second stage (master students). We invite applications of outstanding students who are close to finishing a bachelor's or master's degree in economics or a related discipline who count among the top 10% of graduates in their study programme.

Students with a bachelor's degree will enter the integrated graduate programme in the first stage via the M.Sc. Economic Research and can transfer to the second PhD stage after successful graduation of the M.Sc. Economic Research.

Students already holding a research-oriented master degree can directly enter the second stage. Students with a related master's degree without an explicit research focus (e.g. in economics, econometrics, finance, business administration, or math) attend one year of course-work before entering the second stage.

We offer funding and facilities for students at all levels. Specifically, grants are available for accepted students holding a master degree and for highly qualified applicants with a bachelor´s degree. Students who successfully passed the course-work and are admitted to the second stage can receive funding through CGS scholarships, positions financed through the excellence cluster ECONtribute or doctoral positions at the departments and chairs of the Faculty.

These doctoral students are also equipped with a workspace and computer devices at the beginning of second stage. Shared rooms with computer devices are also available for students in the first stage. Student housing is available for national and international bachelor and master students moving to Cologne. For more information regarding housing please consult the webpages of the Kölner Studierendenwerk .

The PhD programme in Economics is part of the Cologne Graduate School in Management, Economics, and Social Sciences (CGS). It closely cooperates with the following research centers at the University of Cologne and Key Research Initiatives of the Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences:

Cluster of Excellence “ECONtribute: Markets and Public Policy”: The Cluster brings together outstanding researchers from economics and neighboring disciplines – management, psychology, political science and law – from the Universities of Cologne and Bonn, the Behavior and Inequality Research Institute (briq) and the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, with the goal of establishing a leading international research center on markets & public policy.

Center for Social and Economic Behavior (C-SEB): The Center for Social and Economic Behavior (C-SEB) at the University of Cologne brings together Cologne-based researchers and international colleagues from economics, management science, and psychology who investigate the fundamental principles and behavioral mechanisms that affect social and economic behavior.

Behavioural Management Science (BMS): The WiSo Key Research Initiative Behavioural Management Science (BMS) brings together researchers that apply methods of behavioural economics and applied microeconometrics to advance our understanding of how management practices influence the behaviour of people in organisations and affect organisational performance.

Be part of the Cologne experience!

More about our PhD Program and our Research Associates Program

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INSIGHTS aims to build a bridge between academia, policy makers and the wider public.

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General information

• PhD Program

The Berlin School of Economics PhD Program provides outstanding doctoral students with a vibrant, intensively networked research community. The program develops the students’ talents in a unique combination of a high-level, academic research environment together with applied, policy-oriented research opportunities. Students receive state-of-the-art coursework training and can select from a wide array of specializations. For each specialization, a professional research environment is provided by Berlin’s universities and economic research institutes.

How to apply

Course catalog

Program structure and curriculum

All PhD tracks offered in the PhD Program share the same structure and general curriculum. The program’s curriculum is divided into a qualification and a dissertation phase:

Qualification Phase

During the qualification phase (about three semesters), students acquire methodological and research-oriented training in mandatory course work in economic theory, applied economics, business studies, econometrics, and economic policy. Students define their research area and find supervisory support from two supervisors. They write research proposals that are discussed with faculty members individually and in seminars in order to provide early feedback on the scientific potential of research ideas. This is a central part of the PhD Program, in which the students have full flexibility in the choice of their research topics and of the supervisors. During this phase, students are funded through stipends that allow for this flexibility. In total, students have to complete a  minimum of 90 ECTS credits  in order to finish the qualification phase of the program.

Dissertation Phase

During the subsequent dissertation phase (about three years), students write a doctoral thesis while having the opportunity to apply their knowledge in the professional research environment that is provided at the Berlin universities and research institutes participating in the Berlin School of Economics. In this phase, students are typically employed at their supervisor’s chair or in research groups at research institutes.

The PhD will be awarded by one of the institutions in the Berlin School of Economics with the right to award doctoral degrees. In most cases, the PhD is awarded by the institution the student’s first supervisor is affiliated with.

The following chart gives an overview of the general structure of the PhD Program:

Researchers Guide

This guide includes academic advices from the researchers of the Berlin School of Economics.

Special thanks to the INSIGHTS Team, researchers of Berlin School of Economics, Agne Kajackaite, Aleks Zaklan, Alexander Kriwoluzky, Ally Xin Lin, Annekatrin Schrenker, C. Katharina Spieß, Christian Basteck, Ciril Bosch-Rosa, Dorothea Kübler, Francis de Véricourt, Georg Weizsäcker, Gyula Seres, Hande Erkut, Hannes Ullrich, Jana Hamdan, Levent Neyse, Lisa Bruttel, Lutz Weinke, Mira Fischer, Müge Süer, Nikolaus Wolf, Peter Haan, Robert Stüber, Sebastian Schweighofer-Kodritsch, Simone Maxand, Vincent Meisner, and Pablo Brañas-Garza.

You can download the web version

or print the printable version

Also note the compiled information on our website about support and resources, for example Mental Health.

Area Health Economics

Institute of Interdisciplinary Industrial Science

Institute of Health Economics

Institute of Labour Economics

Institute of Statistics

• Economic Policy

Currently in Germany, expenditures of the healthcare system exceed one billion euros per day. The financial stability of the system is highly vulnerable from the one side to the developments in health and the demographics of the population such as aging, migration and epidemics, and on the other side, to the technological change and therapeutic advances that lead to increasing expenses in medicine. The economic approach of the healthcare system has become a necessity. Despite the long history of Economics, Health Economics can be considered as a relatively young discipline. When approaching health and healthcare from an economic perspective, one discovers distinctive characteristics and the complications that are specific to the area. Health economists consider health as a production- and consumption good, inform healthcare-related decision-making and deal with an effective organization of the market for healthcare services and the functions of its key players such as hospitals, physicians, pharmaceutical- and insurance companies. The Area Health Economics brings together the knowledge from several disciplines: micro- and macro-economics, institutional economics, distribution theory, labor economics, business administration and econometrics. The Area provides the students with knowledge and skills to perform theoretical and applied economic analysis of health and healthcare. These include the application of microeconomic tools in the analysis of the market for health and healthcare services, for example to the demand for healthcare influenced by asymmetric information and the behavior of the key players. The theory of institutional economics provides insights into institutions of the social insurance and understanding of advantages and disadvantages of different social insurance systems, distributive justice and politico-economic implications. The elective part of the Area Health Economics offers a variety of related modules. These include lectures on the management of the healthcare providers which covers the specific organization of the German healthcare system and approaches for the management within its key players. The students also learn about the organization of healthcare system in different countries which brings a broader view on the healthcare-related political implications.

Structure Major

Structure minor, detailed structure.

The modules have to be taken in semesters 1-3. Since all the elective module offers are prospective, changes are possible.

Compulsory modules Major / Elective modules Minor

Elective modules (without seminars) major / elective modules minor.

1 Not in summer 2024

Elective modules (seminars) Major / Elective modules Minor

Examination form: Seminar Paper

1 Voraussetzung für die Teilnahme ist, dass mindestens eines der beiden Module „Sekundärdatenanalyse als Evaluationsmethode“ sowie „Lebensqualität und Präferenzmessung im Rahmen von gesundheitsökonomischen Evaluationen“ erfolgreich absolviert worden ist.

Research and practical relevance

Health economics is an interdisciplinary field which combines the knowledge of economics, medicine, law, mathematics, statistics and social science. It is a fast growing research field with increasing relevance in healthcare policy. The Area Health Economics offers a broad spectrum of lectures and seminars, which combine the theoretical background and practical applications in the field. During the program, the students consider real-world examples and receive training in conducting state-of-the-art health services research, quality of life studies, measuring patient preferences and performing different types of cost-effectiveness analyses. The program offers training in model programming and empirical analyses using suitable software. Additionally, the students gain important practical insights from the lectures given by guest speakers who are experts in their respected field. There the students will have an opportunity to communicate with and ask questions to the practitioners from the German sickness funds, hospitals, the German Medical Association and so on. The main educational goal of the Area Health Economics is to prepare the students for a successful career in the healthcare sector by equipping them with thorough theoretical background and excellent methodological, technical and practical skills.

Intended audience (Recommended skills)

The Area Health Economics is designed for the students who intend to develop their career in the healthcare and public health system. This program suits the students who are keen to learn applications of the economic theory in healthcare and gain the methodological and practical skills to conduct state-of-the-art health economic studies. Prospective students are encouraged to have interests in economics, health, and healthcare sector and possess basic analytical skills.

Career prospects

Healthcare is one of the fastest growing sectors worldwide. In Germany, with currently around 5.2 million employees, the healthcare system employs more people than the automotive-, the steel-, the machine-building and the electro-technical industries combined. The importance of this sector will further increase due to the factors like demographical changes and medico-technical progress. The graduates of the Area Health Economics have broad career perspectives and can apply their skills in different healthcare-related institutions including hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, producers of medical devices, health insurance funds, public organizations and health economic consulting.

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Why Doctoral Studies at IWH?

The IWH Doctoral Programme in Economics – one of the Top 20 places to do a PhD  ( INOMICS Career Guide 2023 )

The Halle Institute for Economic Research Halle (IWH) – Member of the Leibniz Association is home to many exceptionally motivated and highly skilled young researchers working on a doctoral dissertation in economics. These fellows are an important part of the IWH research community. The IWH Doctoral Programme in Economics (IWH-DPE) aims to provide these young researchers with a nurturing place to further develop and advance their competences and to make the most of their skills.

Being open to young fellows of the partner universities, IWH-DPE offers a platform for sharing the experience of a program that complies with international standards in post-graduate education and training in economics. IWH-DPE is a milestone in improving the quality of post-graduate education of young economists in the region – in accordance with recommendations by the Leibniz Association and the German Council of Science and Humanities (Wissenschaftsrat).

Download DPE Flyer People    Study Programme    Courses    Seminar    Standards   IWH-DPE Fall 2024 Intake

Research grant for PhD thesis

IWH doctoral student Eleonora Sfrappini won the 2023 FIR-PRI research grant for her ongoing PhD thesis on "Financial Constraints and Emission Intensity". Watch the interview to get a glimpse of what her work focuses on.

What Alumni Say

"Working on my doctoral dissertation at the IWH was an enriching experience both at the scientific and personal level. For instance, it helped me to further develop my analytical skills, which are also very useful in my current job."

Dr Manuel Buchholz, Deutsche Bundesbank, Financial Stability Department, Frankfurt am Main, Germany – DPE Graduate 2016  

"The IWH-DPE not only enables specialisation in a particular field of economics, but also the development of an international network in this field. It thus lays important cornerstones for a career after the doctorate."

Dr Geraldine Dany-Knedlik, German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin) – DPE Graduate 2018  

"The IWH-DPE provides a well-balanced course programme, high-quality supervision, ample opportunities for the exchange of ideas, a large international network, financial support and a great working environment at the IWH – in short, everything that is needed for a successful career in academics."

Dr Gregor von Schweinitz, Assistant Professor for Economics, esp. Quantitative Macroeconomics at the University Leipzig, Germany – DPE Graduate 2013  

"I think back on my time at IWH quite fondly. Those years were foundational in shaping my academic career. Close contact with faculty members and post-doctoral candidates, frequent conferences, internal seminars, and guest speakers, high research standards, access to a huge variety of datasets, as well as a deeply scientific culture create an intellectually stimulating environment and make IWH a perfect institute for doctoral students to learn rigorous academic research."

Vahid Saadi, PhD, Assistant Professor of Finance, IE Business School, Madrid, Spain

Doctoral Programme Director

If you have any further questions please contact me.

Programme Manager

Aims and Approach

This is achieved by combining an excellent course programme and research seminar series with unique chances to conduct research in teams with IWH fellows under the guidance of an IWH supervisor. IWH supervisors will be experienced in both fields, economic research and policy work.

Close collaboration with internationally renowned IWH Research Affiliates, further guidance by IWH Research Professors as well as IWH Research Fellows and research in teams (related to the IWH research agenda) also contributes to the outstanding environment at IWH.

Close collaboration with internationally renowned IWH Research Affiliates and further guidance by IWH Research Professors also contributes to the outstanding environment at IWH. The opportunity to do research on real-world economic and political challenges is an additional advantage.

The opportunity to do research on real-world economic and political challenges is an additional advantage. This approach allows doctoral students to finish their studies within a four-year track.

The Doctoral Programme in Economics is primarily intended for doctoral students employed at IWH or at one of our partner institutions. You can find out about vacancies and scholarships within the section Career .

Central-German Doctoral Program Economics

The central aim of the Central-German Doctoral Program Economics (CGDE) is to enhance the quality of doctoral education by offering research-oriented courses which are held by internationally renowned researchers. The Ph.D. programme is a joint initiative of various economics faculties and research institutes in Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony:

• Technical University of Dresden: Faculty of Economics and Management
• ifo Institute for Economic Research Dresden (ifo Dresden)
• Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg: Faculty of Economics and Management
• Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH)
• Friedrich Schiller University Jena: Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
• Leipzig University: Faculty of Economics and Management
• Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg: Faculty of Economics and Management

The core program comprises first-year courses from the fields Macroeconomics, Microeconomics and Econometrics. Internationally acknowledged researchers provide an overview of their respective field of research.

International Graduate Academy

The IWH cooperates with the International Graduate Academy (InGrA) of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg on the organization of personal qualification workshops. The InGrA was founded in 2008 to ensure and increase the quality of methodical education for PhD students.

Partner Institutions

Technische Universität Dresden

Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg

Friedrich Schiller University Jena

Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg

Leipzig University

ifo Institut Niederlassung Dresden

Universität Bonn

Department of Economics / BGSE

• Department of Economics

PhD Program

Doctoral program (phd) with integrated msc economic research.

Our two-year program Master of Science in Economics with a specialization in Economic Research (MSc/Economic Research) prepares you for independent academic research, providing you with the skills to push the knowledge frontier in economics. It is the gateway to our doctoral program in Economics.

Funding & Fees

There are no tuition fees at public universities in Germany - neither for domestic nor for international students. There are grants available from the very beginning of the MSc/Economic Research program.

Workshops & Seminars

From their 2nd year onwards, BGSE students participate in one or more of the BGSE workshops where current research projects are discussed.

FAQ Program

Below you find a collection of the frequently asked general questions about our combined research master/doctoral program.

Exchange Programs

The Bonn Graduate School of Economics offers doctoral students various ways of gather research experience in prestigious universities abroad.

PhD position in Health Economics and Biostatistics

Job Information

Offer description.

Do you want to contribute to improving human health?

To be a doctoral student means to devote oneself to a research project under supervision of experienced researchers and following an individual study plan. For a doctoral degree, the equivalent of four years of full-time doctoral education is required.

The Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (MEB) conducts research in epidemiology, biostatistics and health economics across a broad range of areas within biomedical science. The department is among the largest of its type in Europe with special focus on increasing our knowledge of the aetiology of different diseases. Our department consists of researchers, doctoral students, biostatisticians, health economists, data collectors and database administrators as well as administrative personnel, in total some 250 staff. The department is situated at campus Solna. Further information can be found at http://ki.se/meb

The research group

A PhD position is available within the biostatistics group at MEB. The biostatistics group at MEB, KI comprises 4 professors, 2 professor emerita, 2 senior lecturers, 9 PhD-level statisticians, 4 masters-level statisticians, 2 health economists, 4 postdocs and 15 doctoral students. The group is involved in a wide variety of research projects, including survival analysis, multi-state models, family studies and precision medicine. Relevant to this position, the biostatistics group also supports the development and application of methods for health economic evaluations, particularly for cancer screening and treatment.

The doctoral student project and the duties of the doctoral student

The European Commission recently recommended that European Union member states investigate the stepwise introduction of prostate cancer screening programmes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) together with possible ancillary tests. In line with and preceding this recommendation, the Confederation of Regional Cancer Centres in Sweden initiated population-based organised prostate cancer testing (OPT) projects in multiple regions. As a part of the Swedish Consortium for Research on Organised Prostate Cancer Testing (SweCROPT) working group (WG) for Health Economics, our group is looking for a PhD student who can plan and conduct research projects under supervision.

The overarching aims of this project are: (a) to investigate how to reduce the healthcare utilisation and societal burden due to prostate cancer through clinically effective and cost-effective risk-adapted organised testing and; (b) to provide reliable evidence to Swedish clinicians and policy makers to develop and evaluate the current OPT projects using simulations and health economic evaluations. The project will include research aimed at investigating: the cost-effectiveness of an organised prostate cancer testing with evidence on the subsequent rescreening from screening trials (e.g. STHLM3-MRI, STHLM3MRI-Reinvite) and registers (doctoral project 1); extending a current microsimulation model to incorporate the current opportunistic testing practice and the risk-adapted screening practice (doctoral project 2); evaluating the cost-effectiveness of an opt-in national prostate cancer screening program using the OPT base algorithm, together with other biopsy strategies and ancillary tests in Sweden (doctoral projects 3 and 4); and assessing the short-term budget impact on implementing a national screening program using the OPT base algorithm and alternative strategies in Sweden (doctoral project 5).

The successful applicant will work with Shuang Hao (Health Economist, coordinator of the WG Health Economics for SweCROPT), Mark Clements (Associate Professor in Biostatistics), Tobias Nordström (Urologist, Associate Professor in Urology) and Anna Lantz (Urologist, Associate Professor in Urology). The candidate will also have opportunities to work with other KI researchers and researchers from other regions in Sweden.

What do we offer?

Choose to work at KI – Ten reasons why Career support for doctoral students International staff

A creative and inspiring environment full of expertise and curiosity. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Our vision is to pursue the development of knowledge about life and to promote a better health for all. At Karolinska Institutet, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. As a doctoral student you are offered an individual research project, a well-educated supervisor, a vast range of elective courses and the opportunity to work in a leading research group. Karolinska Institutet collaborates with prominent universities from all around the world, which ensures opportunities for international exchanges. You will be employed on a doctoral studentship which means that you receive a contractual salary. Employees also have access to our modern gym for free and receive reimbursements for medical care.

Eligibility requirements for doctoral education

In order to participate in the selection for a doctoral position, you must meet the following general (A) and specific (B) eligibility requirements at latest by the application deadline.

It is your responsibility to certify eligibility by following the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

A) General eligibility requirement

You meet the general eligibility requirement for doctoral/third-cycle/PhD education if you:

• have been awarded a second-cycle/advanced/master qualification (i.e. master degree), or
• have satisfied the requirements for courses comprising at least 240 credits of which at least 60 credits were awarded in the advanced/second-cycle/master level, or
• have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way in Sweden or abroad.*

Follow the instructions on the web page Entry requirements (eligibility) for doctoral education.

*If you claim equivalent knowledge, follow the instructions on the web page Assessing equivalent knowledge for general eligibility for doctoral education.

B) Specific eligibility requirement

You meet the specific eligibility requirement for doctoral/third-cycle/PhD education if you:

- Show proficiency in English equivalent to the course English B/English 6 at Swedish upper secondary school.

Follow the instructions on the web page English language requirements for doctoral education.

Verification of your documents Karolinska Institutet checks the authenticity of your documents. Karolinska Institutet reserves the right to revoke admission if supporting documents are discovered to be fraudulent. Submission of false documents is a violation of Swedish law and is considered grounds for legal action.

(A) and (B) can only be certified by the documentation requirement for doctoral education .

Skills and personal qualities

This is multi-disciplinary position. We are looking for a candidate that shares our passion for research, who is highly motivated to work efficiently both independently, as a part of the research team as well as supervised, and has curiosity and an ability to learn.

Required The ideal candidate should have:

- a formal training in biostatistics and/or health economics - strong knowledge in health economic modelling - good knowledge in biostatistics/statistics - programming skills, preferably using R and possibly C++ - relevant applied studies or project work - excellent oral and written communication skills in English

- Candidates who have a medical background will be well ranked - The candidate is expected to understand Swedish or is actively learning Swedish as the projects are of high policy relevance

Terms and conditions

The doctoral student will be employed on a doctoral studentship maximum 4 years full-time.

Application process

Submit your application and supporting documents through the Varbi recruitment system. Use the button in the top right corner and follow the instructions. We prefer that your application is written in English, but you can also apply in Swedish.

Your application must contain the following documents:

- A personal letter and a curriculum vitae - Degree projects and previous publications, if any - Any other documentation showing the desirable skills and personal qualities described above - Documents certifying your general eligibility (see A above) - Documents certifying your specific eligibility (see B above)

A selection will be made among eligible applicants on the basis of the ability to benefit from doctoral education. The qualifications of the applicants will be evaluated on an overall basis.

Karolinska Institutet uses the following bases of assessment:

- Documented subject knowledge of relevance to the area of research - Analytical skill - Other documented knowledge or experience that may be relevant to doctoral studies in the subject.

All applicants will be informed when the recruitment is completed.

Want to make a difference? Join us and contribute to better health for all

Requirements

Additional information, work location(s), where to apply.

UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE

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  Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences

Master health economics.

Change for better Quality and Efficiency by connecting Health Care Perspectives.

If you’re already studying Health Economics and would like to find out more about specific details of your master programme, you’ll find what you’re looking for on the Programme structure pages.

This programme provides you with:

• skills for a career as a health economics specialist in microeconomic management, administration, associations and health care governance institutions.
• in-depth knowledge to develop an interdisciplinary understanding of the field based on the stakeholder groups that are relevant to health care (e.g. managers, policymakers, physicians).
• methods for the application of health economic tools to support, shape or implement decision-making processes.

The Master’s Degree in Health Economics gives me the opportunity to deepen my knowledge in the fields of medicine, business administration and economics. I am particularly interested in learning how healthcare markets can be designed efficiently without losing focus on the best possible patient care. Melanie , student of M.Sc. Health Economics at the WiSo Faculty

This programme is right for you if you:

• have successfully completed a bachelor’s or equivalent degree in health economics.
• are motivated to learn new and interdisciplinary topics in a target-oriented way.
• have mathematical understanding and good verbal and written expression in German and English.
• work as a team player, because working in groups is often practiced in seminars and an important key factor for connecting health care perspectives.

This programme is right for you if you are interested in the following topics:

• identification of the most important national and international players in health care systems
• development and analysis of economic decision-making in companies
• advancement of management skills
• analysing diseases that are significant in terms of health economics and assessing how appropriate health care management can help tackle them
• the benefit of evidence-based medicine as a key factor in therapy decisions
• assessment of health policy measures, ethical implications of structures and courses of action evaluation of methodological designs in the context of clinical trials

Programme Overview

Connection of Health Care Perspectives

Specialised Career Tracks

With the innovative development of a Health Care Manager and a Health Care Analyst Track , you have the opportunity to set a focus from the second semester onwards. The tracks recommend courses from the study programme and help you to select courses according to the desired career profile.

Health Economics is a pioneering field, bringing together the perspectives of different stakeholders from the realms of management, medicine and policy making. Ludwig Kuntz , Professor and Director of the Department of Business Administration and Health Care Management

Unique Cooperation with the Faculty of Medicine

This Master of Science in Health Economics at the University of Cologne is the only study programme that can provide such close teaching and research cooperation between a Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences and a Faculty of Medicine in Germany. As a student of health economics, you have the opportunity to participate in courses from the medical studies in order to deepen your knowledge from a medical perspective.

International

In terms of job prospects, Cologne is a very attractive location for students of health economics. Many hospitals, well-known pharmaceutical companies, insurance and consulting firms are located in Cologne and the surrounding region. We help you forge ties with our partners even before you have completed the programme.

Upon graduation from the interdisciplinary Master in Health Economics programme, you will be prepared to work in public and private healthcare institutions. Your work will include tasks in the field of management, administration or in associations as well as health policy management institutions. Further professional prospects for graduates of this interdisciplinary programme include activities in academic teaching and health, as well as health policy research.

Through my studies at the University of Cologne with a focus on corporate finance and management in the healthcare sector, I have enjoyed a sound education from which I still benefit today. Even during my thesis on the subject of “Management structures of hospital management” I was able to establish initial contacts with my current colleagues. My solid theoretical knowledge, which I acquired during my studies, was the basis on which I was able to continuously build. Pit Zimmermann , Managing Director, St. Vinzenz-Hospital, Academic Teaching Hospital of the University of Cologne and Alumnus of the WiSo Faculty

Exemplary areas for job opportunities

Health care manager track.

• Controller for hospitals
• Assistance to the board of directors at the hospital
• Project Manager of health care providers
• Quality Manager

While studying Health Economics in Cologne, I really enjoyed the close connection with research. It inspired me to pursue my PhD studies and to start working in an international academic environment. Sandra Sülz , Assistant Professor, Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management, Health Services Management & Organisation (HSMO) and Alumna of the WiSo Faculty

Health Care Analyst Track

Application.

All information about the Master's application at the WiSo Faculty.

Detailed information and contact

We are happy to support you in your ambitions:

If you are interested in or have questions about our WiSo degree programmes, the student advisors at the WiSo Student Service Point will be happy to help:

• WiSo Student Service Point hotline: +49 (0) 221/470-8818
• www.wiso-studentservice.uni-koeln.de

• CHE University Ranking
• DAAD database on admission requirements
• Help and Advice

International Programmes 2023/2024

Health Economics - Master of Science Health Economics - MSc

University of cologne • köln.

• Course details
• Online learning
• Costs / Funding
• Requirements / Registration

German, English

15 June for the next winter semester

Applicants with a (Bachelor's) degree acquired abroad must apply online and via post at uni-assist before 15 June.

By incorporating the medical, management and system perspective into the programme structure, as a student, you will be prepared for a successful career in healthcare with an all-embracing understanding. The course contents are taught by researchers and experts from the field, and thus, they create a well-founded portfolio of theories, methods and interdisciplinary applications.

Having studied in the innovative Health Care Manager Track or the Health Care Analyst Track , you will have the opportunity to set a focus from the second semester onwards. The tracks recommend courses from the study programme and help you to select courses according to the desired career profile.

This Master's of Science in Health Economics at the University of Cologne is the only study programme that can provide such close teaching and research cooperation between a Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences and a Faculty of Medicine in Germany. As a student of health economics, you will have the opportunity to participate in courses from the medical studies in order to deepen your knowledge from a medical perspective.

The Health Economics programme gives you an interdisciplinary understanding of the field by concentrating on stakeholder groups that are relevant in health care. Therefore, it covers the management perspective (i.e. business administration), system perspective (economics and social policy) and medical perspective (i.e. professionals and patients).

For specialisation within the study programme, you can choose to study in the Health Care Manager Track or the Health Care Analyst Track . A combination is also possible. The Health Care Analyst Track supports your professional profile for a career in scientific and academic health care institutions. The Health Care Manager Track enables you to specialise for careers in hospital management, quality management or consulting. Analytical-oriented and management-oriented contents are available in each section of the study programme.

• Within this programme, the compulsory core and advanced sections cover the basic skills and knowledge you need for a recommended track specialisation.
• The specialisation section will provide you with a diverse range of seminars and lectures, through which you will be able to further develop skills according to your interests.
• The supplementary section serves as an additional section for developing a more specific profile. Modules from business administration as well as from the Faculty of Medicine are available to students.
• The Master’s thesis is written towards the end of the programme and can be research or practice-oriented, corresponding to each student’s interest.

• Specialist literature in other languages
• Language training provided
• Training in intercultural skills
• Study trips
• Projects with partners in Germany and abroad
• International comparisons and thematic reference to the international context
• Content-related regional focus

Most of our courses are offered in English. We cooperate with more than 130 partner universities throughout the world, so it is easy for you to take a semester abroad, to take part in one of our study tours or to participate in our other short programmes such as "WiSo@NYC". More information and offers can be found at the  International Relations Center (ZIB WiSo) .

• Access to databases with study material
• Discussion forums and / or groups
• Online sessions
• Online study material provided by institution
• Online tutorials
• Video learning (Pre-recorded videos, Vlogs, Video-Podcasts)

The semester contribution amounts to approx. 320 EUR per semester. The fee includes a semester ticket that covers public transport in the entire federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Scholarships and further financing options

• Overall grade of at least 2.7 (German grading system) in the Bachelor’s degree
• at least 60 ECTS credits in health economics and/or the fields of business administration and economics
• at least 15 ECTS credits in medicine
• at least 18 ECTS credits the field of "Methods in Health Economics"

Please find more information and full list of requirements here .

German language skills (C1) and English language skills (B2)

https://wiso.uni-koeln.de/en/studies/application/master

Accommodation is available through the student union (" Kölner Studierendenwerk ") or on the private housing market. Rent for a single room in a student hall of residence is approx. 200-300 EUR. Rent for a single room on the private housing market is approx. 400 EUR.

WiSo Career Services

• Buddy programme
• Specialist counselling

WiSo Student Services

University of Cologne

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35 phd-health-economics PhD positions in Germany

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Researcher in the field of industrial transformation and energy system analysis 1

to advance your scientific qualifications with a PhD and have the potential for further scientific development and profile building. You are motivated to contribute to the success of the energy transition

PhD Position – Development of Regional Decarbonization and Adaptation Plans

Your Job: We offer a challenging and innovative PhD position within the international EU project LOCALISED. You will play a key role in the development of regionally adapted plans for the European

Research assistant - Generative AI in production

of machine learning and statistics - Implement and test generative AI in cooperation with industrial partners - Publish results at scientific conferences Was Sie mitbringen Requirements: - Strong master's/ PHD

FAIROmics - PhD fellowship in explainable machine learning techniques to support the design of plant-based fermented food products – Development of a serious game to support the design of plant-based

sustainability and health benefits, as well as lifestyle trends and dietary restrictions. However, plant-based food products can be nutritionally unbalanced, and their flavour profiles may limit their acceptance

PhD in the field of Catalyst Development

of energy, environment, safety, health , communication and mobility. The Chemical Energy Storage department works on tasks relating to catalyst development. Within the Carbon2Chem project, catalysts

PhD Position: Drought tolerance of mixed cropping systems of wheat and herbal plants

(Transformative Mixed Crop Systems for One Health ), which is funded by the Hessian State Offensive for the Development of Scientific and Economic Excellence (LOEWE), we are looking for a PhD student for four years

PhD researcher (f_m_x) in Modelling Human-Flood Risk System

Statistical methods including Machine Learning and Bayesian Statistics. Develop and apply flood impact models with a focus on multi-sector impacts ( economic , social, and human health ) including writing well

St Andrews–Max Planck PhD Studentship in Population, Health and Data Science

Job Offer St Andrews–Max Planck PhD Studentship in Population, Health and Data Science We invite applications from qualified and highly motivated students for a 3.5-year St Andrews–Max Planck  PhD

PhD student (m/f/d)

Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No Offer Description Innovative research at the interplay of the bio economy , agriculture, environmental and climate protection as

Researcher - environmental impacts of innovations

economy and digitalization. What you will do You will lead national and international research and policy advice projects to successfully shape the sustainability transformation and work in a

Searches related to phd health economics

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How can I find funding for my doctoral studies?

Source: © Graduate Academy of the University of Heidelberg, information brochure for international doctoral candidates: [ http://www.graduateacademy.uni-heidelberg.de/md/gradakad/downloads/information_brochure_int_en_neu_2015.pdf ], p. 62–91.

In principle, there are three main funding models – employment as a research assistant at the University or at your research facility, a doctoral fellowship, or employment outside of the University or other academic facilities.

• Research positions
• Doctoral fellowships
• Employment outside the University

1. RESEARCH POSITIONS

Doctoral candidates holding research positions at the University are generally research assistants ( wissenschaftlicher Angestellter/Mitarbeiter ) or graduate assistants ( geprüfte wissenschaftliche Hilfskraft ). You can ask your supervisor or at the institute of your choice about any open positions. You can also search for such positions on the internal University job market at: www.uni-heidelberg.de/stellenmarkt

2. DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS

You can find a general overview of fellowships on the Graduate Academy website at: http://www.graduateacademy.uni-heidelberg.de/stipendien/index_en.html

Fellowships provided by the state of Baden-Württemberg (Landesgraduiertenstipendien):

Every year Heidelberg University awards fellowships within the funding program sponsored by the state of Baden-Württemberg (Landesgraduiertenförderung – LGFG). More information is available at: www.graduateacademy.uni-heidelberg.de/stipendien/individual/lgfg.html Organizations for the promotion of young talent (Begabtenförderungswerke): Eleven organizations for the promotion of young talent award fellowships to doctoral candidates in all disciplines. More information is available at: www.stipendiumplus.de

Other funders, including smaller, specialized funding agencies can be found at: www.stiftungsindex.de/sfoerderung.htm www.mystipendium.de/ www.stipendienlotse.de/ www.elfi.info/index.php

Fellowships especially for international doctoral candidates :

We recommend that you also investigate funding possibilities in your home country or at the German missions abroad. You can also obtain valuable information from the German Academic Exchange Service (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst – DAAD), which is the most important funding agency for international doctoral candidates who would like to come to Germany for their doctoral training. Further information about the DAAD is available at: www.daad.de and www.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/datenbank/en/21148-scholarship-database/ (scholarship database) (Katholischer Akademischer Ausländerdienst – KAAD), is a catholic agency, which provides scholarships for international students who want to do a postgraduate degree in Germany. You find more information on kaad.de/1/scholarships/studieren-in-deutschland/ (Evangelisches Studienwerk), represents the protestant students funding agency. With justified reasons, you can also apply for a scholarship if you are not a member of the protestant church. Find more information on www.evstudienwerk.de/stipendien/promotion.html (in German only)

Fellowships through a graduate school or research training group:

It is possible to apply for a fellowship through a graduate school or research training group. These are research groups of varying sizes in which professors, doctoral candidates and postdocs work together in a particular research area. You can obtain an overview of the graduate schools and research groups at Heidelberg University at: www.graduateacademy.uni-heidelberg.de/schulen

Heidelberg Graduate School of Global Health - Promotionskolleg Global Health für Medizinstudierende

The Heidelberg Graduate School of Global Health is positioned at the Institute of Global Health within the Medical Faculty and funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung and is offering a doctoral scholarship for medical students in Global Health.

For further informations please visit the website: Heidelberg Graduate School of Global Health

Fellowships especially for female researchers:

You can find information on funding especially for female researchers on the website of the Heidelberg University Equal Opportunities Office (Gleichstellungsbüro). The staff of the Equal Opportunities Office advises female researchers about various funding programs, including those for female researchers with families: www.uni-heidelberg.de/gleichstellungsbeauftragte www.uni-heidelberg.de/gleichstellungsbeauftragte/aktivitaeten/wissenschaft_familie.html

Hints for applying for a doctoral fellowship:

In your search for a doctoral fellowship, it is a good idea to apply to funding agencies that could have a particular interest in supporting your dissertation project because of your research area or your personal situation.

It is very important to prepare your application carefully and thoughtfully – to include all the important information about your planned doctoral work and to tailor the contents of your application to the interests and requirements of each individual funding agency. It is a good idea to speak to someone at each agency about the application procedure and the agency’s organizational or funding culture before finalizing your application. The following are examples of documents that can be required in fellowship applications:

• working title for your dissertation
• outline of the planned work
• time schedule for completing your dissertation

Important information regarding fellowship applications:

Please be aware that the application deadlines vary greatly among the various funding agencies. The evaluation process is also handled differently by every agency and can take between 3 to 12 months to complete.

3. EMPLOYMENT OUTSIDE THE UNIVERSITY

Employment outside the University or other academic facilities could be a part-time position in private industry that allows you enough time to work on your dissertation. For the long-term planning of your doctoral training, please take into consideration that you will most likely need considerably more time to complete your dissertation if you are also employed at the same time. You can find information about jobs on the open job market at: www.graduateacademy.uni-heidelberg.de/finanzierung/stellenmarkt.html Important information regarding work permits for international doctoral candidates:

Before investigating employment options, please verify your legal situation with regard to working in Germany.

Reference works on funding for doctoral training:

The following books (in German only) provide information about funding opportunities for doctoral training and research in Germany:

Herrmann, Dieter/Spath, Christian: “Forschungshandbuch 2008/2009: Förderprogramme und Förderinstitutionen für Wissenschaft und Forschung”, Alpha Verlag, 2008.

Herrmann, Dieter/Verse Herrmann, Angela: “Geld fürs Studium und die Doktorarbeit: Wer fördert was?“, Eichborn Verlag, 2005.

You are welcome to come and use both of these books at the Graduate Academy Service Point.

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PhD Programs in Economics in Germany

Study economics in germany.

If you are looking for a PhD studies in economics, Germany is a great option. The exceptional infrastructure available for your research work, combined with paid PhD positions, makes it an attractive destination when looking for opportunities to do your doctoral research in economics. Germany is home to many prestigious higher education institutions like  University of Mannheim , LMU Munich , University of Bonn and Technical University of Munich . They all rank in the Top 100 of the Times Higher Education World Rankings for Economics . Other great economics departments are located at  Technical University of Dortmund ,  Graduate School of Economic & Social Sciences (GESS), University of Mannheim ,  Berlin School of Economics (BSE) ,  Ruhr Graduate School in Economics (RGS Econ) ,  University of Cologne  or  Bonn Graduate School of Economics .

Germany’s research institutions, universities and companies welcome international researchers and offer excellent opportunities for doctoral students. PhD students can usually work as a research associate at a university or receive a scholarship. German education system offers two ways to pursue your doctoral degree: individual doctorate and structured PhD programmes. Structured PhD programmes, for example, have a strong international orientation with English as the team language.

Pursue your research interests, be it economics theory, macroeconomics, econometrics, health economics, financial economics, behavioral economics, applied economics or development economics. Start your postgraduate research training in Germany and enjoy international atmosphere in cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich or Hamburg.

Key Information

• Academic year: October – July • Course length: 3-4 years • Type of degrees: Doctor of Philosopy (Dr. phil) also known as Promotion • Fees: free at public universities for up to three years (six semesters) of study (you only need to pay a small administration fee of €100-€250) • Scholarships: DAAD Scholarship , scholarships from German universities • Living costs: €800 – €1000 (Munich, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, and Heidelberg most expensive) • Average starting salary: €56,000 for economists with a PhD degree ( INOMICS Salary Report )

Highlighted PhD courses in economics in Germany

• PhD Program

Doctoral Positions at the Graduate School of the Social and Behavioural Sciences (GSBS), University of Konstanz

Phd programme in economics (with integrated m.sc. economic research).

• PhD Program, Supplementary Course, Program

Ph.D. Supplementary Courses

Ph.D. in Finance, fully funded

Inomics advice articles for postgraduate research students.

10 Things To Know Before You Start a PhD in Germany

10 Most Affordable Countries in Europe to Do Your Economics PhD

Top PhD Programs in Economics

Sample Motivation Letter For Your Economics PhD Application

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PhD in Health Economics

• Admission and Financial Aid
• Requirements for Degree Completion

Located in Los Angeles on the USC University Park Campus, the USC PhD program in health economics offers students the opportunity to help shape the future of health care through groundbreaking research and innovative policy solutions. Our multidisciplinary program offers rigorous training in microeconomics, econometrics, cost effectiveness analysis, welfare economics, public finance, epidemiology and health status measurement. Students in the program work closely with our world-renowned faculty, gaining the practical research experience needed to launch their careers.

Our program offers numerous benefits to help position our students for future success. All of our PhD students are fully funded, including tuition remission and stipend, for up to five years through teaching and research assistantships or competitive fellowships.  Many of our students participate in internships that offer real world experience and networking opportunities in industry, policy analysis and consulting.  Our department’s affiliation with the Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics provides opportunities for students to work closely with distinguished faculty from across USC on impactful projects. Bolstered in part by our strong alumni network, our students are highly sought after for positions in academia, government and industry.

“I chose the Health Economics PhD program at USC for three reasons: the strong concentration of health economics faculty here as compared to traditional economics departments, the rigor of economics training compared to other applied programs, and quality of life (i.e., location in sunny Southern California and funding from a USC School of Pharmacy fellowship).”

Laura Henkhaus

Phd, health economics ’19, data scientist, hill physicians medical group.

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Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?

The environmental protection agency says “forever chemicals” must be removed from tap water. but they lurk in much more of what we eat, drink and use..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. And this is “The Daily.”

[THEME MUSIC]

This month for the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency began to regulate a class of synthetic chemicals, known as forever chemicals, in America’s drinking water. But the chemicals, which have been linked to liver disease and other serious health problems, are in far more than just our water supply. Today, my colleague Kim Tingley explains.

It’s Wednesday, April 17.

So Kim, any time the EPA announces a regulation, I think we all sort of take notice because implicit in it is this idea that we have been exposed to something — something bad, potentially, lead or asbestos. And recently, the EPA is regulating a type of chemical known as PFAS So for those who don’t know, what are PFAS chemicals

Yeah, so PFAS stands for per and polyfluoroalkyl substances. They’re often called forever chemicals just because they persist so long in the environment and they don’t easily break down. And for that reason, we also use them in a ton of consumer products. They’re in makeup. They’re in carpet. They’re in nonstick cookware. They’re in food packaging, all sorts of things.

Yeah, I feel like I’ve been hearing about these chemicals actually for a very long time. I mean, nonstick pans, Teflon — that’s the thing that’s in my mind when I think PFAS.

Absolutely. Yeah, this class of chemicals has been around for decades. And what’s really important about this is that the EPA has decided, for the first time, to regulate them in drinking water. And that’s a ruling that stands to affect tens of millions of people.

So, help me understand where these things came from and how it’s taken so long to get to the point where we’re actually regulating them.

So, they really actually came about a long time ago. In 1938, DuPont, the people who eventually got us to Teflon, they were actually looking for a more stable kind of refrigerant. And they came upon this kind of chemical, PFAS. The thing that all PFAS chemicals have is a really strong bond between carbon atoms and fluorine atoms. This particular pairing is super strong and super durable.

They have water repellent properties. They’re stain resistant. They’re grease resistant. And they found a lot of uses for them initially in World War II. They were using them as part of their uranium enrichment process to do all these kinds of things. And then —

Well, good thing it’s Teflon.

In the 1950s is when they really started to come out as commercial products.

Even burned food won’t stick to Teflon. So it’s always easy to clean.

So, DuPont started using it in Teflon pans.

Cookware never needs scouring if it has DuPont Teflon.

And then another company, 3M also started using a kind of PFAS —

Scotchgard fabric protector. It keeps ordinary spills from becoming extraordinary stains.

— in one of their big products, Scotchgard. So you probably remember spraying that on your shoes if you want to make your shoes waterproof.

Use Scotchgard fabric protector and let your cup runneth over.

Right — miracle product, Scotchgard, Teflon. But of course, we’re talking about these chemicals because they’ve been found to pose health threats. When does that risk start to surface?

Yeah, so it’s pretty early on that DuPont and 3M start finding effects in animals in studies that they’re running in house.

Around the mid ‘60s, they start seeing that PFAS has an effect on rats. It’s increasing the liver and kidney weights of the rats. And so that seems problematic. And they keep running tests over the next decade and a half. And they try different things with different animals.

In one study, they gave monkeys really, really high levels of PFAS. And those monkeys died. And so they have a pretty strong sense that these chemicals could be dangerous. And then in 1979, they start to see that the workers that are in the plants manufacturing, working with these chemicals, that they’re starting to have higher rates of abnormal liver function. And in a Teflon plant, they had some pregnant workers that were working with these chemicals. And one of those workers in 1981 gave birth to a child who had some pretty severe birth defects.

And then by the mid 1980s, DuPont figures out that it’s not just their workers who are being exposed to these chemicals, but communities that are living in areas surrounding their Teflon plant, particularly the one in Parkersburg, West Virginia, that those communities have PFAS in their tap water.

Wow, so based on its own studies, DuPont knows its chemicals are making animals sick. They seem to be making workers sick. And now they found out that the chemicals have made their way into the water supply. What do they do with that information?

As far as we know, they didn’t do much. They certainly didn’t tell the residents of Parkersburg who were drinking that water that there was anything that they needed to be worried about.

How is that possible? I mean, setting aside the fact that DuPont is the one actually studying the health effects of its own chemicals, presumably to make sure they’re safe, we’ve seen these big, regulating agencies like the EPA and the FDA that exist in order to watch out for something exactly like this, a company that is producing something that may be harming Americans. Why weren’t they keeping a closer watch?

Yeah, so it goes kind of back to the way that we regulate chemicals in the US. It goes through an act called the Toxic Substances Control Act that’s administered by the EPA. And basically, it gives companies a lot of room to regulate themselves, in a sense. Under this act they have a responsibility to report to the EPA if they find these kinds of potential issues with a chemical. They have a responsibility to do their due diligence when they’re putting a chemical out into the environment.

But there’s really not a ton of oversight. The enforcement mechanism is that the EPA can find them. But this kind of thing can happen pretty easily where DuPont keeps going with something that they think might really be a problem and then the fine, by the time it plays out, is just a tiny fraction of what DuPont has earned from producing these chemicals. And so really, the incentive is for them to take the punishment at the end, rather than pull it out early.

So it seems like it’s just self-reporting, which is basically self-regulation in a way.

Yeah, I think that is the way a lot of advocacy groups and experts have characterized it to me, is that chemical companies are essentially regulating themselves.

So how did this danger eventually come to light? I mean, if this is in some kind of DuPont vault, what happened?

Well, there’s a couple different things that started to happen in the late ‘90s.

The community around Parkersburg, West Virginia, people had reported seeing really strange symptoms in their animals. Cows were losing their hair. They had lesions. They were behaving strangely. Some of their calves were dying. And a lot of people in the community felt like they were having health problems that just didn’t really have a good answer, mysterious sicknesses, and some cases of cancers.

And so they initiate a class action lawsuit against DuPont. As part of that class action lawsuit, DuPont, at a certain point, is forced to turn over all of their internal documentation. And so what was in the files was all of that research that we mentioned all of the studies about — animals, and workers, the birth defects. It was really the first time that the public saw what DuPont and 3M had already seen, which is the potential health harms of these chemicals.

So that seems pretty damning. I mean, what happened to the company?

So, DuPont and 3M are still able to say these were just a few workers. And they were working with high levels of the chemicals, more than a person would get drinking it in the water. And so there’s still an opportunity for this to be kind of correlation, but not causation. There’s not really a way to use that data to prove for sure that it was PFAS that caused these health problems.

In other words, the company is arguing, look, yes, these two things exist at the same time. But it doesn’t mean that one caused the other.

Exactly. And so one of the things that this class action lawsuit demands in the settlement that they eventually reach with DuPont is they want DuPont to fund a formal independent health study of the communities that are affected by this PFAS in their drinking water. And so they want DuPont to pay to figure out for sure, using the best available science, how many of these health problems are potentially related to their chemicals.

And so they ask them to pay for it. And they get together an independent group of researchers to undertake this study. And it ends up being the first — and it still might be the biggest — epidemiological study of PFAS in a community. They’ve got about 69,000 participants in this study.

Wow, that’s big.

It’s big, yeah. And what they ended up deciding was that they could confidently say that there was what they ended up calling a probable link. And so they were really confident that the chemical exposure that the study participants had experienced was linked to high cholesterol, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, testicular cancer, kidney cancer, and pregnancy induced hypertension.

And so those were the conditions that they were able to say, with a good degree of certainty, were related to their chemical exposure. There were others that they just didn’t have the evidence to reach a strong conclusion.

So overall, pretty substantial health effects, and kind of vindicates the communities in West Virginia that were claiming that these chemicals were really affecting their health.

Absolutely. And as the years have gone on, that was sort of just the beginning of researchers starting to understand all the different kinds of health problems that these chemicals could potentially be causing. And so since the big DuPont class action study, there’s really just been like this building and building and building of different researchers coming out with these different pieces of evidence that have accumulated to a pretty alarming picture of what some of the potential health outcomes could be.

OK, so that really kind of brings us to the present moment, when, at last, it seems the EPA is saying enough is enough. We need to regulate these things.

Yeah, it seems like the EPA has been watching this preponderance of evidence accumulate. And they’re sort of deciding that it’s a real health problem, potentially, that they need to regulate.

So the EPA has identified six of these PFAS chemicals that it’s going to regulate. But the concern that I think a lot of experts have is that this particular regulation is not going to keep PFAS out of our bodies.

We’ll be right back.

So, Kim, you just said that these regulations probably won’t keep PFAS chemicals out of our bodies. What did you mean?

Well, the EPA is talking about regulating these six kinds of PFAS. But there are actually more than 10,000 different kinds of PFAS that are already being produced and out there in the environment.

And why those six, exactly? I mean, is it because those are the ones responsible for most of the harm?

Those are the ones that the EPA has seen enough evidence about that they are confident that they are probably causing harm. But it doesn’t mean that the other ones are not also doing something similar. It’s just sort of impossible for researchers to be able to test each individual chemical compound and try to link it to a health outcome.

I talked to a lot of researchers who were involved in this area and they said that they haven’t really seen a PFAS that doesn’t have a harm, but they just don’t have information on the vast majority of these compounds.

So in other words, we just haven’t studied the rest of them enough yet to even know how harmful they actually are, which is kind of alarming.

Yeah, that’s right. And there’s just new ones coming out all the time.

Right. OK, so of the six that the EPA is actually intending to regulate, though, are those new regulations strict enough to keep these chemicals out of our bodies?

So the regulations for those six chemicals really only cover getting them out of the drinking water. And drinking water only really accounts for about 20 percent of a person’s overall PFAS exposure.

So only a fifth of the total exposure.

Yeah. There are lots of other ways that you can come into contact with PFAS. We eat PFAS, we inhale PFAS. We rub it on our skin. It’s in so many different products. And sometimes those products are not ones that you would necessarily think of. They’re in carpets. They’re in furniture. They’re in dental floss, raincoats, vinyl flooring, artificial turf. All kinds of products that you want to be either waterproof or stain resistant or both have these chemicals in them.

So, the cities and towns are going to have to figure out how to test for and monitor for these six kinds of PFAS. And then they’re also going to have to figure out how to filter them out of the water supply. I think a lot of people are concerned that this is going to be just a really expensive endeavor, and it’s also not really going to take care of the entire problem.

Right. And if you step back and really look at the bigger problem, the companies are still making these things, right? I mean, we’re running around trying to regulate this stuff at the end stage. But these things are still being dumped into the environment.

Yeah. I think it’s a huge criticism of our regulatory policy. There’s a lot of onus put on the EPA to prove that a harm has happened once the chemicals are already out there and then to regulate the chemicals. And I think that there’s a criticism that we should do things the other way around, so tougher regulations on the front end before it goes out into the environment.

And that’s what the European Union has been doing. The European Chemicals Agency puts more of the burden on companies to prove that their products and their chemicals are safe. And the European Chemicals Agency is also, right now, considering just a ban on all PFAS products.

So is that a kind of model, perhaps, of what a tough regulation could look like in the US?

There’s two sides to that question. And the first side is that a lot of people feel like it would be better if these chemical companies had to meet a higher standard of proof in terms of demonstrating that their products or their chemicals are going to be safe once they’ve been put out in the environment.

The other side is that doing that kind of upfront research can be really expensive and could potentially limit companies who are trying to innovate in that space. In terms of PFAS, specifically, this is a really important chemical for us. And a lot of the things that we use it in, there’s not necessarily a great placement at the ready that we can just swap in. And so it’s used in all sorts of really important medical devices or renewable energy industries or firefighting foam.

And in some cases, there are alternatives that might be safer that companies can use. But in other cases, they just don’t have that yet. And so PFAS is still really important to our daily lives.

Right. And that kind of leaves us in a pickle because we know these things might be harming us. Yet, we’re kind of stuck with them, at least for now. So, let me just ask you this question, Kim, which I’ve been wanting to ask you since the beginning of this episode, which is, if you’re a person who is concerned about your exposure to PFAS, what do you do?

Yeah. So this is really tricky and I asked everybody this question who I talked to. And everybody has a little bit of a different answer based on their circumstance. For me what I ended up doing was getting rid of the things that I could sort of spot and get rid of. And so I got rid of some carpeting and I checked, when I was buying my son a raincoat, that it was made by a company that didn’t use PFAS.

It’s also expensive. And so if you can afford to get a raincoat from a place that doesn’t manufacture PFAS, it’s going to cost more than if you buy the budget raincoat. And so it’s kind of unfair to put the onus on consumers in that way. And it’s also just not necessarily clear where exactly your exposure is coming from.

So I talk to people who said, well, it’s in dust, so I vacuum a lot. Or it’s in my cleaning products, so I use natural cleaning products. And so I think it’s really sort of a scattershot approach that consumers can take. But I don’t think that there is a magic approach that gets you a PFAS-free life.

So Kim, this is pretty dark, I have to say. And I think what’s frustrating is that it feels like we have these government agencies that are supposed to be protecting our health. But when you drill down here, the guidance is really more like you’re on your own. I mean, it’s hard not to just throw up your hands and say, I give up.

Yeah. I think it’s really tricky to try to know what you do with all of this information as an individual. As much as you can, you can try to limit your individual exposure. But it seems to me as though it’s at a regulatory level that meaningful change would happen, and not so much throwing out your pots and pans and getting new ones.

One thing about PFAS is just that we’re in this stage still of trying to understand exactly what it’s doing inside of us. And so there’s a certain amount of research that has to happen in order to both convince people that there’s a real problem that needs to be solved, and clean up what we’ve put out there. And so I think that we’re sort of in the middle of that arc. And I think that that’s the point at which people start looking for solutions.

Kim, thank you.

Here’s what else you should know today. On Tuesday, in day two of jury selection for the historic hush money case against Donald Trump, lawyers succeeded in selecting 7 jurors out of the 12 that are required for the criminal trial after failing to pick a single juror on Monday.

Lawyers for Trump repeatedly sought to remove potential jurors whom they argued were biased against the president. Among the reasons they cited were social media posts expressing negative views of the former President and, in one case, a video posted by a potential juror of New Yorkers celebrating Trump’s loss in the 2020 election. Once a full jury is seated, which could come as early as Friday, the criminal trial is expected to last about six weeks.

Today’s episode was produced by Clare Toeniskoetter, Shannon Lin, Summer Thomad, Stella Tan, and Jessica Cheung, with help from Sydney Harper. It was edited by Devon Taylor, fact checked by Susan Lee, contains original music by Dan Powell, Elisheba Ittoop, and Marion Lozano, and was engineered by Chris Wood.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly.

That’s it for The Daily. I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you tomorrow.

• April 18, 2024   •   30:07 The Opening Days of Trump’s First Criminal Trial
• April 17, 2024   •   24:52 Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?
• April 16, 2024   •   29:29 A.I.’s Original Sin
• April 15, 2024   •   24:07 Iran’s Unprecedented Attack on Israel
• April 14, 2024   •   46:17 The Sunday Read: ‘What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise’
• April 12, 2024   •   34:23 How One Family Lost $900,000 in a Timeshare Scam
• April 11, 2024   •   28:39 The Staggering Success of Trump’s Trial Delay Tactics
• April 10, 2024   •   22:49 Trump’s Abortion Dilemma
• April 9, 2024   •   30:48 How Tesla Planted the Seeds for Its Own Potential Downfall
• April 8, 2024   •   30:28 The Eclipse Chaser
• April 7, 2024 The Sunday Read: ‘What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living’
• April 5, 2024   •   29:11 An Engineering Experiment to Cool the Earth

Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Featuring Kim Tingley

Produced by Clare Toeniskoetter ,  Shannon M. Lin ,  Summer Thomad ,  Stella Tan and Jessica Cheung

With Sydney Harper

Edited by Devon Taylor

Original music by Dan Powell ,  Elisheba Ittoop and Marion Lozano

Engineered by Chris Wood

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

The Environmental Protection Agency has begun for the first time to regulate a class of synthetic chemicals known as “forever chemicals” in America’s drinking water.

Kim Tingley, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, explains how these chemicals, which have been linked to liver disease and other serious health problems, came to be in the water supply — and in many more places.

On today’s episode

Kim Tingley , a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine.

Background reading

“Forever chemicals” are everywhere. What are they doing to us?

The E.P.A. issued its rule about “forever chemicals” last week.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Fact-checking by Susan Lee .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

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UB team receives funding to demonstrate effectiveness of ‘food-is-medicine’ in health care

UB faculty members Lucia Leone (left) and Jill Tirabassi are co-principal investigators on a food-is-medicine project funded by the American Heart Association. Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki

By DAVID J. HILL

Published April 18, 2024

A team of UB researchers has received funding from the American Heart Association (AHA) for research that will focus on the implementation of innovative food-prescription programs for older adults.

The AHA has awarded UB $400,000 for the 18-month project as part of the organization’s Health Care by Food initiative, which is leveraging research to build the evidence needed to show the clinical and cost-effectiveness of so-called “food-is-medicine” programs.

The AHA funding comes at a key time. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) earlier this year approved an amendment to New York State’s Medicaid 1115 waiver that enables the state to modify its Medicaid program to address the health disparities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The waiver paves the way for, among other things, investments in supporting strategies for improved access to food and nutrition, such as food-is-medicine programs.

The field of food-is-medicine is going to develop rapidly as other states, not just New York, have submitted Medicaid 1115 waivers, says Lucia Leone, associate professor in the Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, School of Public Health and Health Professions.

Leone is co-principal investigator on the AHA project with Jill Tirabassi, clinical assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB.

“With the state’s Medicaid waiver approval, we know these programs are going to be coming down the pipeline in the next few years. Our aim is to look at three different types of food programs for adults over 65 in Western New York and develop ways to make them as user-friendly as possible,” Leone says.

“It is essential that we are able to quickly develop best practices for ensuring food prescription programs are successful at reaching the people who need them,” she adds. “This research will help practitioners who are looking to design food-prescription programs for their communities understand what works and what doesn’t.”

Food-is-medicine may be defined as providing healthy food resources to treat, manage and prevent specific chronic conditions in coordination with the health care sector.

Food-is-medicine programs often feature:

• Medically tailored meals, which are often delivered to patients with diet-related health conditions or among those at high risk.
• Produce prescription programs that integrate healthy food into a patient’s health care plan, enabling patients to better follow their health care team’s dietary advice.
• And medically tailored groceries, which may include a selection of grocery items prescribed by a registered dietitian or nutritionist for patients with diet-related acute and chronic health conditions who can prepare food at home.

A total of 75 participants will be recruited for the study from primary care clinics at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC). Participants will be split into three groups of 25, each of which will receive a different food-related program over 12 weeks.

One group will receive a weekly credit redeemable at Massachusetts Avenue Project’s mobile produce market. Another group will have fresh produce boxes delivered to their homes via FreshFix, a local food-delivery company co-founded by Leone. And the third group will have medically tailored meal kits, with recipes to make several meals, delivered to their homes each week. The food-delivery partners will curate the items that are sent in each box, tailoring the contents to meet dietary restrictions, such as diabetes or food allergies.

The researchers will focus particularly on the successes and challenges of the implementation of the food-is-medicine programs. Toward that end, participants will receive surveys each week, which will help Leone and Tirabassi gauge whether people used the voucher or food they received. A community advisory board will also be set up to help oversee the project and provide insight into participants’ lived experiences and how those affect their ability to participate in these programs. For example, do they struggle with using smart phone apps and websites to customize the food they receive?

“Older adults face unique barriers with food and nutrition access,” Tirabassi says, explaining the focus on adults over 65. “They often have multiple chronic health conditions, have experienced life course changes — becoming a widower, for example — and are on a fixed income. Many people in this age also have mobility and transportation challenges.”

The AHA project is focused on food-prescription program usage and not health outcomes for a very simple reason, Tirabassi says. “We already know that diet-related changes can affect health outcomes.” But, she adds, “Food-prescription programs have not had very high utilization rates, and that is what we need to change.”  

The Primary Care Research Institute in the Department of Family Medicine at the Jacobs School, which has expertise in healthy aging research, is also a partner on the project.

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