Topics

ASPE produces policy research focusing on older adults, Medicare, dual-eligible beneficiaries, individuals with disabilities, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and caregivers. Resources relating to aging and disability include advance directives, end-of-life care planning, elder abuse, long-term services and supports (LTSS), home and community-based services (HCBS), and healthy aging.

ASPE publishes research to inform policymaking on behavioral health across sectors, including healthcare financing and delivery, public health, and human services. ASPE’s work focuses on supporting evidence-based prevention efforts, increasing access to high-quality treatment, and promoting long-term recovery from mental and substance use disorders.

Discover research in the areas of Biomedical Innovation, Electronic Health Records, Information Technology, and Medical Product Development.  

ASPE produces a range of policy research to promote child development, early childhood care and education, child welfare, positive youth development, and child and family well-being. 

ASPE uses and produces data as key components of its work. ASPE studies and assesses data and how it is captured, managed, analyzed and protected, including the interplay of the sources, systems, standards for data that support policy, practice and research. 

Evaluation and analysis provide essential evidence for HHS to understand how its programs work, for whom, and under what circumstances. HHS builds evidence through evaluation and analysis in order to inform decisions in budget, legislative, regulatory, strategic planning, program, and policy arenas.

ASPE produces health policy research with a focus on equity, coverage, and access. Find resources related to a broad range of topics, including the uninsured population, vaccine hesitancy, Medicaid/CHIP, Medicare, the federal marketplace (HealthCare.gov), telehealth, health care delivery, underserved areas, delivery system transformation, health outcomes, and social determinants of health.

Stable, affordable, accessible housing represents a key determinant of health and well-being. ASPE conducts work on the intersection of housing and well-being including coordinating HHS's responses to homelessness.

ASPE produces a range of policy research, analysis, and evaluation to strengthen human services programs and policies. Topics include well-being, employment and workforce, child welfare, technical assistance, early childhood care and education, and service delivery systems. 

ASPE conducts research, analysis, and evaluation of policies related to the long-term care and personal assistance needs of people of all ages with chronic disabilities.

Find ASPE’s latest releases on critical aspects of health and human services-related policy and regulation on the Federal and State levels. Learn more about the impact of these policies across the country.

ASPE releases the annual U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines, which are used to determine financial eligibility for some Federal programs. Presented here are the poverty lines for every State and the District of Columbia. You will also find extensive resources on poverty estimates, trends, and analysis, plus historical information on poverty and the Guidelines.

Drugs and other medical products greatly impact human health and the health care system. ASPE conducts a variety of research in this area, including work related to medical product development and regulation; medical product markets, pricing and competition; prescription drug benefits and spending on medical products; medical product supply chains; and medical product safety.

Access up-to-date ASPE research on key public health topics including emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, such as influenza and COVID-19; health equity; antibiotic resistance; rural health; opioids, opioid use disorder and overdose prevention; maternal health; public health and health care workforce and infrastructure; immunization and vaccines; Indian health; HIV/AIDS; tobacco; and e

ASPE's Division of Strategic Planning leads the development of the HHS Strategic Plan, ensuring it reflects the activities that HHS is undertaking over the next four years. The Division aligns the HHS Strategic Plan's goals and objectives with our Priority Goals, the Secretary’s priorities, and other, topic-specific strategic plans implemented by the Department.