Yuting Zhang

I am an Assistant Professor at the Department of Health Policy and Management at the University of Pittsburgh and Director of the Pharmaceutical Economic Research Group.

Research Interests

I am interested in learning the effect of various pharmacy benefit designs and health insurance designs on health outcome and medical expenditures. I am also interested in comparing the cost-effectiveness of different health policy or treatment interventions.

Selected Papers

(* denotes trainee)

Zhang Y, Newhouse JP, Baicker K. Are Drugs Substitutes or Complements for Intensive (and Expensive) Medical Treatment? American Economic Review. 2011. 101(3):393-97.

Zhang Y, Baicker K, Newhouse JP. Geographic Variation in the Quality of Prescribing . N Engl J Med. 2010; 363(21): 1985-8.

Zhang Y, Baicker K, Newhouse JP. Geographic Variation in Medicare Drug Spending . N Engl J Med. 2010 Jul 29; 363 (5): 405-9.

Zhang Y, Gellad WF, Zhou L*, Lin YJ*, Lave JR. Access to and Use of $4 Generic Program in Medicare. Journal of General Internal Medicine. Jul 13 2011. Online first DOI: 10.1007/s11606-011-1801-y2012

Zhang Y, Donohue JM, Lave JR, Gellad WF. The impact of Medicare Part D on medication treatment of hypertension . Health Services Research. Feb 2011; 46 (1): 185-198.

Lave JR, Men A, Wang W, Day B, Zhang Y. Employee Choice of a High Deductible Health Plan across Multiple Employers. Health Services Research Feb 2011; 46 (1): 138-154.

Zhang Y, Lave JR, Newhouse JP, Donohue JM. How the Medicare Part D Drug Benefit Changed the Distribution of Out-of-Pocket Pharmacy Spending among Older Beneficiaries. J Gerontology: Social Sciences. 2010 Jul; 65(4): 502-7.

Zhang Y, Lee BY, Donohue JM. Ambulatory Antibiotic Use and Prescription Drug Coverage in Older Adults. Arch Intern Med. 2010; 170 (15): 1308-1316.

Zhang Y, Zhou L*, Gellad WF. Potential Savings from Greater Use of $4 Generic Drugs. Arch Intern Med. 2011 Mar 14;171(5):468-9

Zhang Y, Lave JR, Donohue JM, Fischer MA, Chernew ME, Newhouse JP. The impact of Medicare Part D on medication adherence among older adults enrolled in Medicare-Advantage products. Med Care. May 2010; 48(5):409-417.

Zhang Y, Donohue JM, Lave JR, O'Donnell G, Newhouse JP.(2009). The Effect of Medicare Part D on Drug and Medical Spending. NEJM. 361(1):52-61.

Zhang Y, Adams AS, Ross-Degnan D, Zhang F, Soumerai SB.(2009). Effects of Prior Authorization on Medication Discontinuation Among Medicaid Beneficiaries With Bipolar Disorder. Psychiatric Services. 60(4), 520-527.

Zhang Y., Donohue J., Newhouse J.P., and Lave, J.R. (2009). The Effects of the Donut Hole on Drug Spending: A Closer Look at Medicare Part D. Health Affairs. 28(2), w317-325. Wide media coverage including NPR, DUQ, TV and newspapers, e.g., Post-Gazette, U.S.News, Kaiser Daily Network.

Zhang, Y.(2008). Cost-Saving Effects of Olanzapine as Long-Term Treatment for Bipolar Disorder. The Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics. 11, 135-146. This paper won the Adam Smith Award - Excellence in Mental Health Policy and Economics Research Award .

Zhang, Y., and Soumerai, S. B. (2007). Do newer prescription drugs pay for themselves? A reassessment of the evidence. Health Affairs. 26(3), 880-886.

Huskamp H.A., Frank R.G., Kimberly M.A., and Zhang, Y.(2005). The Impact of a Three-Tier Formulary on Demand Response for Prescription Drugs. Journal of Economics & Management Strategy.

Personal Interests

I like traveling, photography, music, and books.