February 2026: Dr. Randall Ellis (CAS/Economics)

Randall P. Ellis is a professor in the Department of Economics, where he has been on the faculty since 1981. He earned his Ph.D. in economics from MIT after attending Yale University and the London School of Economics and Political Science. His research has focused on health economics, spanning both US and international economics topics. In 2024 he received the Victor Fuchs Lifetime Achievement Award in the Field of Health Economics from the American Society of Health Economists.

Dr. Ellis is Past President of the American Society of Health Economists and served as an associate editor of the Journal of Health Economics and American Journal of Health Economics. Dr. Ellis was one of three original architects of the Diagnostic Cost Group (DCG) and Hierarchical Condition Category (HCC) models, with funding from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and others. HCC models are used to risk adjust payments to Medicare Advantage (Part C) health plans, Part D prescription drug plans and the ACA (Obamacare) Health Insurance Exchanges. This body of risk adjustment work received the AcademyHealth 2008 Health Services Research Impact Award. Dr. Ellis has written and coauthored over 140 articles, reports and papers. Many have focused on risk adjustment, but others explore provider response to reimbursement systems; optimal insurance; health plan competition; the economics of mental health; health demand modeling in developing countries; and the cost-effectiveness of cancer screening.

When in high school, I loved science courses, but then I worked two summers in an overnight camp for inner-city low-income youths and did a lot of reading about their challenges. Also, I read a book called “Blaming the Victim” that really resonated with me and I decided that social rather than technological problems were more important. At college, I tried all of the social science subjects and latched onto economics because it used a lot of data and equations, and addressed so many key societal challenges. It is also relevant that my father was an economist.

I do a lot of work modeling why some people use a lot more medical care than others. My last big research project developed a new diagnostic classification system that extended the one I collaborated on developing in the 1990s that is still used to pay Medicare Advantage and ACA Marketplace health plans. The issues addressed in my new research are precisely relevant to the current debate over how to pay the correct subsidies for people to afford health insurance. We will see if we are successful in getting it noticed and implemented.

Don’t be afraid to think big. Avoid becoming responsible for a large staff or you will face the headaches of trying to keep them all employed and happy. Take advantage of sabbaticals to refresh your ideas and boost your research.  

I always love my PhD course in health economics, which I cotaught for the first time this year. I am loving my undergraduate Introduction to Health Economics class this year since the themes are so relevant and the student interest and effort are incredible.

My father was incredibly handy and taught me how to do all kinds of repairs on homes with my hands and the right tools. With help, I have renovated two kitchens and multiple bathrooms, and I am not reluctant to do work on foundations, plumbing, wiring, carpentry, or even roofing. (I do get professionals to do the final plumbing/wiring connections as required, and always hire professional plasterers and painters because they are 10 times more efficient.)