Daniel Polsky, Rachel Werner and Susan Domchek, all professors at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine and LDI Senior Fellows, were named new members of the National Academy of Medicine at NAM’s Oct. 15 annual meeting.

The three were among 85 new members named to what is one of the highest honors in the field of health and medicine. 

‘Remarkable scholars’
“This distinguished and diverse class of new members is a truly remarkable set of scholars and leaders whose impressive work has advanced science, improved health, and made the world a better place for everyone,” said National Academy of Medicine President Victor J. Dzau. “Their expertise in science, medicine, health, and policy in the U.S. and around the globe will help our organization address today’s most pressing health challenges and inform the future of health and health care.”

Polsky, Werner and Domchek join twenty-four other LDI Senior Fellows who are members of the prestigious National Academy.

Polsky, PhD, MPP, has served as the Executive Director of LDI for the past six years. He is a professor of both Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine and Health Care Management at the Wharton School. A former Senior Economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, he is nationally cited for advancing the fundamental understanding of the tradeoffs between quality of care and health spending, and the methodology for economic evaluations within randomized clinical trials. His recent scholarship on the access implications of narrow provider networks and physician fees for Marketplace and Medicaid beneficiaries has made him a leading national authority, currently serving on the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel of Health Advisors and the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Board on Health.

Werner, MD, PhD, is a Professor of both Medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine and Health Care Management at the Wharton School. She is also Director of Health Policy and Outcomes Research, and Associate Chief of Research in the Penn Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine. A former Senior Advisor to the HHS Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), she is nationally cited for advancing our understanding of how the measurement and reporting of health care quality — and the incentives for performance along those measures — often bring unintended and undesired consequences that compete with efficiency goals. Her research on the real-world impact of financial incentives for quality improvement has made her a leading expert in this area and changed how the nation evaluates hospitals and nursing homes.

Domchek, MD is a Professor of Oncology at the Perelman School and Executive Director of the Basser Research Center for BRCA at Penn’s Abramson Cancer Center. She is a nationally recognized expert in breast cancer genetics, breast cancer risk and prevention as well as breast cancer treatment. Her research interests include understanding breast cancer susceptibility genes and how to target such genetic mutations for improved cancer treatment. She has served on the editorial board for the National Cancer Institute Physician Data Query database summary in breast cancer genetics, as well as on several committees for the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and the White House Cancer Moonshot initiative.