Health Care and Life Sciences
The Gardner Institute employs a senior health care analyst and a team of economists knowledgeable about Utah’s health care policies and economy. We also benefit from a Health Care Advisory Council that guides our research agenda and supports the development of a health care policy practice area. Our research focus areas include, but are not limited to: (1) analyzing state and national health care trends; (2) collaborating with health care experts and community leaders to analyze relevant health care policy; and (3) conducting research and preparing data on Utah’s health care sector.
Medicaid: What is FMAP and Why Does It Matter?
The Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) is the share of Medicaid costs funded by the federal government.
2030 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Utah: Demographic, Social, and Environmental Factors
Utah’s demographic, social, and environmental factors favorably position the state to host another successful Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.
Utah’s Life Sciences Workforce and Industry Growth: 2012 to 2021
industry was a source of economic stability from 2012 to 2021. Job growth remained strong compared with other industries and states. Increasingly, life sciences companies provide a large share of Utah’s employee workforce relative to other states with significant life sciences sectors.
Utah’s Invisible Workforce: The Economic Contributions and Health Impacts of Family Caregiving
As the need for family caregiving is expected to grow over the next decade, there are concerns about the mental and physical toll it places on Utah’s caregivers.
A Pathway for Improving Early Childhood Mental Health in Utah (The Children’s Center Utah)
Sound mental health provides an essential foundation of stability that supports all other aspects of human development—from the formation of friendships and the ability to cope with adversity to the achievement of success in school, work, and community life.
A Blueprint for Growing Salt Lake City’s Health Care Innovation Economy
Salt Lake City will be a premier health care innovation hub that provides expanded economic opportunity and improved health and well-being for all residents.
A Roadmap for Improving Utah’s Behavioral Health System 2021 End-of-Year Update
The Utah Hospital Association (UHA) released A Roadmap for Improving Utah’s Behavioral Health System in February 2020. The Roadmap was developed in collaboration with UHA’s behavioral health committee and mental health workgroup, comprising members of the mental health community. The purpose of the roadmap is to provide a guide policy makers, UHA, and other stakeholders can use to support legislation, policy decisions, and program development to help ensure every citizen in the state of Utah has access to appropriate behavioral health services and supports.
Curbing the Youth Vaping Pandemic: A Review of How Utah’s Laws and Policies Compare Nationally and to Other States
Vaping, or the use of electronic cigarettes, is a public health issue both nationally and here in the state of Utah. Rates of vaping doubled nationally between 2017 and 2019, and Utah has experienced a significant increase over the past several years as well.
Fact Sheet: Family Caregivers in Utah
A growing body of family caregivers in Utah provide unpaid care to family members or friends with health problems or disabilities. The purpose of this fact sheet is to provide key information about Utah's caregivers, their challenges, and the economic value they provide.
Preparing for the Future: The Potential Long-Term Impacts of COVID-19 on Utah’s Child and Youth Mental Health
Understanding the potential impact of these issues will be important to ensuring a thriving future for Utah’s children.