Kara Contreary specializes in quantitative program evaluation design and implementation. Her work spans a variety of topic areas, including increasing access to care for low-income populations, promoting employment of individuals with disabilities, and improving the efficiency of health care purchasing.
Contreary is currently deputy task lead and principal investigator for the quantitative evaluation of the Medicare Prior Authorization Models. In addition, she leads quantitative analyses of the effects of section 1115 Medicaid demonstrations on health care utilization and cost among newly enrolled beneficiaries. She is principal investigator for a Disability Research Consortium project using predictive analytics for early identification of claimants of short-term disability benefits who exhaust their benefits, and serves as a researcher on two state-level evaluations of demonstrations designed to promote transition to postsecondary education and employment for youth with disabilities.
Contreary’s work has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Disability Policy Studies, Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, and Social Security Bulletin. She holds a Ph.D. in economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Evidence from Mathematica’s recently released evaluation of alternative Medicaid expansions offers insights on how Medicaid programs can support the health of beneficiaries as the nation recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
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