Anna D. Sinaiko, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Health Economics and Policy in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Sinaiko received her Ph. D. from Harvard University in 2010. She has expertise in health economics and health policy. The unifying theme of her research is an effort to understand consumer decision-making in health care settings, and the implications of consumer and other stakeholder behavior for policy that aims to improve the quality and efficiency of the U.S. health care system. Her research brings improved understanding of the dynamics, strategies, and outcomes associated with consumer health plan choice, of consumer use of information on health care quality and cost, of implications of the structure of consumer cost-sharing and provider payment, and of physician-patient discussions of cost and quality. Specific empirical projects include an examination of consumer response to tiered physician networks, of consumer response to a web-based price transparency tool, and of consumer choice of health insurance plans. Dr. Sinaiko’s work has been published in the Journal of Health Economics, Health Affairs, and numerous other peer-reviewed journals.
Produced under the Optimizing Value in Health Care program, administered by AcademyHealth, this paper outlines the following barriers to patient centered care: missing information, inadequate trust, organizational culture, and alignment of incentives.