Duties

The divisionâs recently completed work includes projections of health insurance coverage for the nonelderly, an analysis of Medicaidâs exclusion of payments for residents of institutions for mental diseases, an analysis of the effects of changes in manufacturersâ future revenues on prescription drug development, an analysis of the effects on health insurance coverage and the federal budget of lowering the age of eligibility for Medicare, an analysis of the costs of illustrative single-payer health care systems, an analysis of the uninsured population, long-term projections of spending in federal health care programs, and a study of how a âpublic optionâ offered in nongroup health insurance markets might be designed. Ongoing work includes studies on a broad range of topics, including preventive health services, mental health, the development of new medical technologies, and factors affecting the supply of, demand for, and prices of medical services.
The successful candidate will produce research reports about issues affecting the federal government and will help to develop new studies and to design and improve the analytical models used in CBOâs analyses and its estimates of the costs of proposed legislation. Topics of analysis will shift over time, providing new opportunities to contribute. The economist will also collaborate with analysts in CBOâs Budget Analysis Division to develop cost estimates for legislation and baseline estimates of the cost of government programs. Furthermore, CBOâs economists are supported in disseminating both the agencyâs research and their own research in CBO working papers and submissions to academic journals.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• US citizenship or current permanent residents seeking citizenship

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

Tier One Background Investigation

Qualifications

Applicants must have a Ph.D. in economics, health economics, or a related discipline. In addition, applicants should have experience in health policy analysis, strong quantitative skills, experience using large data sets, an in-depth knowledge of at least one programming language, and an interest in the development of policy-relevant models. Applicants should be able to initiate and complete research projects both independently and with a team, be able to clearly present their work orally and in writing to nontechnical audiences and want to work on issues of current or potential legislative interest to the Congress. People who are not citizens of the United States should review CBOâs citizenship requirements or contact careers@cbo.gov for assistance in determining eligibility.

TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS:

See Qualifications above

Education

EDUCATION:

Applicants must have a Ph.D. in economics, health economics, or a related discipline. In addition, applicants should have prior experience in health policy analysis, strong quantitative skills, experience using large data files, an in-depth knowledge of at least one programming language, and an interest in the development of policy-relevant models.

Additional information

This job is being filled by an alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive civil service.