Research

Research Overview

Dr. Chen is a health economist whose research uses economic and data-science methods to inform health policy and reduce health disparities in the United States and China. His work evaluates how health insurance, hospital reform, and pharmaceutical policy shape healthcare use, spending, and efficiency; measures how social determinants of health, including racism, income, and place, drive inequities in health and access to care; and estimates the costs of chronic disease and the value of prevention.

Recent projects apply machine learning, spatial analysis, and novel data such as mobile phone records to health equity, COVID-19, aging, and the economics of genomics and precision public health. Drawing on his experience as a senior health economist at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he has published more than 150 peer-reviewed articles, with support from the NIH and private foundations.

Funded Projects

Achieving Health Equity by Improving Participant Representativeness in the All of Us Research Program: A Pilot Community-Based Participatory Research in Georgia
2024–2025
NIH / Emory University, Georgia CTSA · Co-PI (with T. Rosser) · $48,771
Disparities in Machine-Learning Modeling to Predict Hospital Readmissions among Patients Discharged to Skilled Nursing Facility
2024–2025
NIH / Emory University, Georgia CTSA · Co-I (PI: D. Jung) · $57,684
Engaging Rural Georgia Communities to Understand and Eliminate Barriers to Participating in the All of Us Research Program
2023–2024
University of Georgia, Office of the Provost · PI · $9,933
Principles for Global Public Health Convention
2023
AIDS Healthcare Foundation / University of Miami · Subcontract PI · $17,978
Improving Prediction of Beneficiary-level Medical Costs by Incorporating Social Determinants of Health Indicators in Risk Adjustment Models to Address Health Disparities: A Machine Learning Approach
2022–2023
NIH AIM-AHEAD Initiative / University of North Texas · PI · $347,358
A Workshop on Applications of Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning in Health Disparities Research and Workforce Diversity
2022–2023
NIH AIM-AHEAD Initiative / Howard University · PI · $20,000
Using Machine Learning and Causal Inference Methods to Examine Disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (Supplement of R01 MD013886)
2022–2024
NIH / New York University · PI (Georgia) · $158,956
A Special Issue in Health Equity on Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Health and Health Equity
2022
China Medical Board · PI · $18,251
Using Mobile Phone-generated Big Data to Evaluate the Impact of Tiered-Healthcare on Health Services Utilization and Epidemic Prevention and Control
2022–2024
National Natural Science Foundation of China (72174098) · PI · RMB 480,000
Assessing and Mitigating the Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic among Asian Americans in the US
2021
The Chinese Economists Society · PI (Georgia site) · $9,900
Assessing and Mitigating the Mental Health Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic among Asian Americans in Georgia
2021–2022
Georgia Health Foundation · PI · $12,000
Interdisciplinary Approaches to Social Determinants of Health Research
2020–2022
University of Georgia, Office of Research (Interdisciplinary Pre-seed Teaming Grant) · PI · $4,250
Leadership Evaluation in Hospital Management
2020–2021
National Health Commission of China, Centre for Capacity Building and Continuing Education · PI · RMB 30,000
A Systematic Review of Ethical, Legal and Social Implications of Genomic Research in China
2020–2021
Nottingham China Health Institute (Research Seed and Collaboration Fund) · PI · RMB 20,000
Using Agent-based Modeling to Compare Strategies that Can Reduce Rural-Urban Disparities in Cardiovascular Disease
2019–2024
NIH / NIMHD (R01 MD013886) · Co-I (PI: D. Zhang) · $1,574,071
Economic Burden of Cancer Survivorship Attributable to Physical Inactivity
2019
US Census Atlanta Research Data Center (Project Development Grant) · PI · $12,129
Personalized mHealth Intervention to Aid Non-communicable Disease Management among an Elderly Population in Rural China
2018–2019
University of Georgia, Global Research Collaboration Grant · PI · $4,000
Conference Support for the Chinese Economists Society Presidents’ Forum
2018
Zhejiang Natural Science Foundation; University of Nottingham Ningbo China · PI · RMB 80,000
Regulatory Impact Analysis: Methods, Applications, and Implications for Emerging Economies (Conference)
2017–2018
University of Georgia, Office of the Provost · Co-PI · $12,000
Impact of Local Food Prices on the Relationship between Food Stamp Program Participation & Bodyweight Status of Adults in the South
2006–2008
Southern Rural Development Center (Food Assistance Small Grant) · Co-I

Health Economics and Health Policy

Evaluating how health insurance, hospital reform, and pharmaceutical policy shape healthcare use, spending, and efficiency, with a focus on China and the United States.

Impact of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme on Individual Healthcare Utilization and Expenditure

Li S, Zhang D, Chen Z# (# corresponding author)

The Chinese Economy 2019

Research

Research Overview

Funded Projects

Health Economics and Health Policy

Health Disparities and Social Determinants of Health

Chronic Disease Prevention and Economic Evaluation

COVID-19 and Infectious Disease

Data Science and AI for Public Health

Aging and Mental Health

Trust in Health Care and Health Information

Economics of Genomics

Key Collaborators