About News News Subscribe Economics Health Policy Domestic Policy & Politics Education Racial Justice and Equity Facet Area of Focus - News Ian H. Solomon Craig Volden Brian N. Williams Christine Mahoney Benjamin Castleman Kirsten Gelsdorf Gerald Warburg Gabrielle Adams Philip Potter Daphna Bassok Jay Shimshack John Holbein Lucy Bassett Andrew S. Pennock David Leblang Allan Stam Raymond C. Scheppach Sarah Turner Sophie Trawalter Timothy L. Davis Bala Mulloth Benjamin Converse Sebastian Tello Trillo Eileen Chou Jeanine Braithwaite Jennifer Lawless Jill Rockwell Todd S. Sechser Alexander Bick James H. Wyckoff Paul S. Martin Peter Johannessen Steve Hiss Daniel W. Player Laura Toscano Michael D. Williams Noah Myung William Shobe Brooke Lehmann Harry Harding James R. Detert Jazmin Brown-Iannuzzi Jeff Chidester Kyle S. H. Dobson Larry Terry Margaret Foster Riley Molly Lipscomb Abigail Scholer Adam Leive Allison Atteberry Andrew Simon Brad Carson Derek Wu Frederick P. Hitz Galen Fountain Gerald Higginbotham Isaac Mbiti Michele Claibourn Sally Hudson Tim Layton Xiao Wang Adam Roux Amanda Crombie Andy Ortiz Ashley Jardina Brendan J. Boler Brooke Ray Charles J. Rush Charles J. Rush Diane Biesecker George Foresman Jieun Pai Justin H. Kirkland Kimberly Jenkins Robinson Melissa Thomas-Hunt Pam Cipriano Paul Becker Tim Layton (-) Christopher J. Ruhm (-) Gerard Robinson Facet People - News Facet UVA Partner - News Faculty In Action Research and Commentary Racial Justice and Equity Facet News Type - News Apr 28, 2025 UVA Batten a Hub for Health Economics Research The health economy is one of the most extensive and complex systems in modern life, impacting people on a deeply personal level. UVA Batten is honored to have three outstanding faculty members whose research expertise is focused on various policy aspects of the field, including Medicaid and Medicare, COVID-related mortality rates, and other topics. Learn more Mar 27, 2025 UVA Students Visit Norway to Learn Better Approaches to Incarceration Twenty UVA students and staff traveled to Norway over spring break for an immersive study abroad experience to learn about alternative systems for incarceration. It was part of the UVA Batten course, LPPS 5670: Education in the U.S. and International Prison Systems. Learn more Jul 30, 2024 How State Policies Impacted Death Rates During COVID In a paper published in JAMA Health Forum, Professor of Public Policy and Economics Chris Ruhm finds that stringent COVID-19 restrictions saved lives during the pandemic based on a state-by-state analysis of health policies and COVID deaths. Learn more Feb 13, 2024 Advocating for a Better Justice System in America Education Racial Justice and Equity Domestic Policy & Politics Gerard Robinson, who joined the Batten School in the fall of 2023 as a professor of practice in public policy and law, has an understanding of America’s penal systems that is historical, encyclopedic, peppered with factual evidence and flavored with his own philosophical musings. Learn more Dec 13, 2023 Ruhm Named SEA Distinguished Fellow Chris Ruhm, Batten professor of public policy and economics, has received a Distinguished Fellow Award from the Southern Economic Association in recognition for his “substantial record of exceptional scholarly achievement and long-term involvement and service to the association.” Learn more Nov 10, 2023 A Second Chance: The Promise of the Prison-to-Education Pipeline Gerard Robinson, Batten professor of practice, engaged a rapt audience at Batten Hour on the inextricable dynamics of education and incarceration in the U.S. Learn more Sep 22, 2023 Guest Column | Back to School is More Than Back to Partying Each fall, 21,000 UVA students return to Grounds, meaning longer lines at restaurants, more traffic, etc -- but it also means the return of an annual tradition in UVA's spirt of service. Batten professor of practice Gerard Robinson pens a lovely tribute in the Daily Progress to the students who volunteer with area nonprofits. Learn more Jun 23, 2022 We May Not Have Been as Anxious, Depressed in Pandemic's First Year as Once Thought Health Policy Findings from the Batten School's Christopher Ruhm and colleagues at Harvard question the accuracy of the CDC’s Household Pulse survey on mental health. Learn more May 17, 2021 How to target opioid funding to states that need it most Health Policy Economics According to new research from Batten’s Christopher J. Ruhm, the federal government’s opioid grant funding structure favors the least populous states, which are not always the states with greatest need. In an op-ed for The Hill, Ruhm suggests several ways to improve the targeting of federal grants that aim to assist states with opioid problems. Read in The Hill May 03, 2021 Federal Opioid Grant Funding Favors Least Populous States, Not Those With the Greatest Need Economics Health Policy In a new paper published in the journal Health Affairs, Batten’s Christopher J. Ruhm and co-author Bradley A. Katcher find that the federal government’s opioid grant funding structure favors the least populous states, which are not always the states with greatest need. Learn more Apr 09, 2020 How Might the COVID-19 Recession Affect Your Health? An Economist Explains. Economics Health Policy Recessions may be good for overall physical health, but this one could be different. Batten professor Chris Ruhm presented an online talk Wednesday offering an economist’s view of the overall health effects of the COVID-19 recession. His talk was the school’s third installment of its expert chat series about COVID-19. Learn more Nov 21, 2019 New Research: Non-Opioid Drug Death Rates Are Also on the Rise Economics The number of Americans dying from drug overdoses has risen rapidly in the last decade, with opioids viewed as the primary culprit. However, recent research suggests that opioids are not the only drug involved. According to Batten professor of economics, Christopher J. Ruhm, half of the overdose deaths have involved polydrug use and deaths involving nonopioid drugs are rising almost as fast as those involving opioids. READ IN UVA TODAY Stay Up To Date with the Latest Batten News and Events Subscribe
Apr 28, 2025 UVA Batten a Hub for Health Economics Research The health economy is one of the most extensive and complex systems in modern life, impacting people on a deeply personal level. UVA Batten is honored to have three outstanding faculty members whose research expertise is focused on various policy aspects of the field, including Medicaid and Medicare, COVID-related mortality rates, and other topics. Learn more
Mar 27, 2025 UVA Students Visit Norway to Learn Better Approaches to Incarceration Twenty UVA students and staff traveled to Norway over spring break for an immersive study abroad experience to learn about alternative systems for incarceration. It was part of the UVA Batten course, LPPS 5670: Education in the U.S. and International Prison Systems. Learn more
Jul 30, 2024 How State Policies Impacted Death Rates During COVID In a paper published in JAMA Health Forum, Professor of Public Policy and Economics Chris Ruhm finds that stringent COVID-19 restrictions saved lives during the pandemic based on a state-by-state analysis of health policies and COVID deaths. Learn more
Feb 13, 2024 Advocating for a Better Justice System in America Education Racial Justice and Equity Domestic Policy & Politics Gerard Robinson, who joined the Batten School in the fall of 2023 as a professor of practice in public policy and law, has an understanding of America’s penal systems that is historical, encyclopedic, peppered with factual evidence and flavored with his own philosophical musings. Learn more
Dec 13, 2023 Ruhm Named SEA Distinguished Fellow Chris Ruhm, Batten professor of public policy and economics, has received a Distinguished Fellow Award from the Southern Economic Association in recognition for his “substantial record of exceptional scholarly achievement and long-term involvement and service to the association.” Learn more
Nov 10, 2023 A Second Chance: The Promise of the Prison-to-Education Pipeline Gerard Robinson, Batten professor of practice, engaged a rapt audience at Batten Hour on the inextricable dynamics of education and incarceration in the U.S. Learn more
Sep 22, 2023 Guest Column | Back to School is More Than Back to Partying Each fall, 21,000 UVA students return to Grounds, meaning longer lines at restaurants, more traffic, etc -- but it also means the return of an annual tradition in UVA's spirt of service. Batten professor of practice Gerard Robinson pens a lovely tribute in the Daily Progress to the students who volunteer with area nonprofits. Learn more
Jun 23, 2022 We May Not Have Been as Anxious, Depressed in Pandemic's First Year as Once Thought Health Policy Findings from the Batten School's Christopher Ruhm and colleagues at Harvard question the accuracy of the CDC’s Household Pulse survey on mental health. Learn more
May 17, 2021 How to target opioid funding to states that need it most Health Policy Economics According to new research from Batten’s Christopher J. Ruhm, the federal government’s opioid grant funding structure favors the least populous states, which are not always the states with greatest need. In an op-ed for The Hill, Ruhm suggests several ways to improve the targeting of federal grants that aim to assist states with opioid problems. Read in The Hill
May 03, 2021 Federal Opioid Grant Funding Favors Least Populous States, Not Those With the Greatest Need Economics Health Policy In a new paper published in the journal Health Affairs, Batten’s Christopher J. Ruhm and co-author Bradley A. Katcher find that the federal government’s opioid grant funding structure favors the least populous states, which are not always the states with greatest need. Learn more
Apr 09, 2020 How Might the COVID-19 Recession Affect Your Health? An Economist Explains. Economics Health Policy Recessions may be good for overall physical health, but this one could be different. Batten professor Chris Ruhm presented an online talk Wednesday offering an economist’s view of the overall health effects of the COVID-19 recession. His talk was the school’s third installment of its expert chat series about COVID-19. Learn more
Nov 21, 2019 New Research: Non-Opioid Drug Death Rates Are Also on the Rise Economics The number of Americans dying from drug overdoses has risen rapidly in the last decade, with opioids viewed as the primary culprit. However, recent research suggests that opioids are not the only drug involved. According to Batten professor of economics, Christopher J. Ruhm, half of the overdose deaths have involved polydrug use and deaths involving nonopioid drugs are rising almost as fast as those involving opioids. READ IN UVA TODAY