The New York State Health Foundation (NYSHealth) seeks a Policy Researcher to monitor and analyze health policy issues in New York State.

NYSHealth Background:

The New York State Health Foundation (NYSHealth) is a private foundation dedicated to improving the health of all New Yorkers, especially the most vulnerable. NYSHealth began operations in 2006; today, it has approximately $300 million in assets, as well as a $15 million annual grants and operations budget.

The Foundation is committed to making grants, but also to making a difference beyond grant dollars: informing health care policy and practice; spreading effective programs to improve the health system; serving as a convener of health leaders across the State; and providing technical assistance to grantees and partners. Today, the Foundation concentrates its initiatives in two strategic priority areas: Empowering Health Care Consumers and Building Healthy Communities. NYSHealth also engages in responsive grantmaking through a Special Projects Fund and maintains a special interest in veterans’ health.

Position Overview: 

The Policy Researcher will strengthen the capacity within NYSHealth to identify ways the Foundation can inform key health policy issues related to its programmatic goals. In this role, the Policy Researcher will conduct both policy analyses and public health research.

The role includes identifying and tracking key New York State and local—as well as federal—policy initiatives that are relevant to the Foundation’s work. The Policy Researcher will conduct research on the extent of the problems and potential solutions. The person in this position will contribute to identifying ways in which the Foundation can align with or respond to those policy developments and help inform the Foundation’s strategic plans.

The Policy Researcher, in consultation with the Director, Policy and Research, will generate ideas for and lead research projects. The person in this position will analyze data and other materials and author issue briefs, data briefs, white papers, and other publications relevant to the Foundation’s priorities. It is expected that the portfolio of projects that the Policy Researcher will work on at any point in time will span a diverse array of public health and health care delivery system issues. Although many of the projects are likely to be responsive to time-sensitive, near-term needs, the Policy Researcher will also be working on larger-scale projects with longer durations.

The Policy Researcher will work collaboratively and productively with the Foundation’s program staff to identify promising areas for analysis that can inform both NYSHealth’s work and the fields in which we work. The Policy Researcher will also work with the Foundation’s communications staff to prepare reports for external publication, create documents for the NYSHealth website, prepare materials for NYSHealth-sponsored convenings, and help operationalize more advanced data visualizations. The Policy Researcher will be expected to represent the Foundation at public meetings, as well as to cultivate relationships with policy leaders throughout the State. 

This position reports to the Director, Policy and Research. As a member of a small team, this position offers an excellent opportunity to be involved in a wide range of research projects informing policy issues at the national, State, and local levels. NYSHealth is committed to mentoring and providing learning opportunities.

Responsibilities:

The Policy Researcher will be responsible for:

• Developing and maintaining internal expertise on policy issues in New York State, keeping current on literature, and synthesizing issues for NYSHealth staff and leadership.
• Cultivating relationships with policy leaders throughout the State.
• Identifying new research ideas, including developing research designs, to inform priority areas of the Foundation.
• Conducting and/or overseeing assessments and background research to track policy developments and help determine how NYSHealth should respond to emerging issues.
• Conducting and/or overseeing statistical analyses.  
• Writing NYSHealth-produced publications, including fact sheets, issue briefs, data briefs, infographics, blog posts, and reports, as well as drafting components of peer-reviewed publications.
• Briefing NYSHealth staff on research-related projects and identifying areas for collaboration and knowledge-sharing across NYSHealth teams.
• Working with the communications team to help build an external-facing presence for NYSHealth research projects.
• Attending and presenting at external meetings and conferences.

• Possible supervision of other staff depending on the level of experience.
• Performing other duties as assigned.

Required Experience and Qualifications:

Prior academic and/or work experience should demonstrate the ability to understand and synthesize complicated health policy issues, manage projects from start to finish, produce written analytic products, and show an affinity for working with data and statistics.

Other qualifications include:

• A graduate degree in Public Policy, Health Economics, Health Services Research, Public Health, or a related field is required.
• 5–8 years of relevant work experience as a policy analyst/researcher within a health-oriented research/policy organization, a government agency or legislative branch, think-tank, foundation, or consulting firm.
• Deep understanding of New York State health policy issues and experience with the policy-making processes at the State and local levels.
• Knowledge of food and nutrition policy, such as food systems and food assistance benefits, and issues relevant to empowering consumers such as health care price transparency and patient advocacy.
• Instinct for conceiving and then conducting policy-relevant and actionable research.
• Excellent data analysis capabilities, including experience with statistical programming software such as SAS or R and with using large and varied datasets such as Census data (American Community Survey), County Health Rankings, BRFSS, NHIS, MEPS, SPARCS, and claims data.
• Experience writing memos, reports, and manuscripts that translate research into policy-relevant and actionable messages.
• Superb project management and organizational skills, including attention to detail and the ability to multitask.
• Ability to lead small teams and to complete tasks with limited oversight and supervision.
• Ability to interact with high-level individuals and organizations.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills: collegial, energetic, flexible, motivated, and able to develop productive relationships with colleagues, grantees, consultants, and others who contribute to program development and management. Can work independently and as part of a team, and welcomes opportunities to work across diverse cultures.
• Demonstrated maturity and seasoned judgment. Ability to make decisions and justify recommendations.

Application Process:

Candidates are encouraged to describe their skill sets and experience in light of the above qualifications.

NYSHealth offers a competitive package of benefits, including employer-paid health insurance, dental, vision, and life insurance, employer contribution to a 403b retirement account, and an employer-paid monthly MetroCard.

The salary range for this position is $90,000–$120,000, depending on experience and qualifications.

This position will be based at our New York City office or in Albany, although we currently are working remotely.

Send résumé, statement of interest, and preferred location to [email protected] and include “Policy Researcher” in the subject line.

The New York State Health Foundation welcomes applications from people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences, and values having a diverse staff. Employment opportunities are based upon individual capabilities and qualifications without regard to race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic as established under law.