The University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab

About Us

The University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab is dedicated to advancing an equitable world that is accountable for the health of all people. We seek to promote improved global health through four pillars: research, advocacy, education and partnerships for evidence-based solutions. The Policy Lab was established in 2022 and is led by Professor and Chair Emeritus José Szapocznik, Ph.D.

Research

The Policy Lab prioritizes stakeholder-informed research, with current projects examining the pandemic response in Florida and the impact of COVID-19 policies across states.

The Qualitative Assessment of the Florida COVID-19 Response

The Qualitative Assessment of the Florida COVID-19 Response was launched to develop recommendations to prevent, prepare for, and respond to future epidemics before they become pandemics that impact Floridians. This study uses semi-structured interviews to gather input from stakeholders in government, academia, and the private sector on what they believe was done well during COVID-19 and what could be done differently in Florida in the event of a future pandemic.

The Pandemic Policy and Excess Mortality Study

The Pandemic Policy and Excess Mortality Study was launched to assess the impact of COVID-19 policies on excess deaths across U.S. states. This study examines the effects of containment and closure policies and economic support policies that were implemented by governments during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings will be valuable in informing policy decisions in the event of a future pandemic.

Advocacy

We advocate for the reform of policy and practice at the global, regional, national and state levels. In the U.S., the Policy Lab aims to build bipartisan support for reform of the current pandemic preparedness and response architecture rooted in equity, transparency, accountability, global capacity-building, financial sustainability and shared governance. We also advocate for regional and global architecture reform.

United States

Our U.S. focused advocacy was launched in 2021 with the purpose of rallying support of key decision-makers for an international agreement and other mechanisms (e.g., financing) to ensure adequate pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response capacities. We are committed to informing the decision-making processes related to the International Health Regulations (IHR), Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), and Pandemic Fund. Our applied work includes communicating with multi-sectoral stakeholders about evidence-based solutions for global public health.

Global

Prior to the establishment of the lab, the team in collaboration with AHF has been working on issues surrounding global health security in the face of infectious disease threats as the Secretariat of the Panel for a Global Public Health Convention, and in our original stakeholder-informed research on recommendations for improving pandemic preparedness and response. We advocate for accountability and equity in global reforms, including the, WHO Pandemic Agreement  the World Bank Pandemic Fund and the Political Declaration of the United Nations General Assembly High-level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response.

Education

In tandem with advocacy, our work is focused on building dialogue and educating stakeholders about the importance of our advocacy agenda through public and private events and meetings. Partnerships are critical for maintaining an expansive network of information and communication channels that inform our work. Refer to the News [hyperlink to news section] for information on upcoming and past events. 

The University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab

José Szapocznik, PhD​

Director, UM Public Health Policy Lab

Dr. José Szapocznik is among the top 100 NIH-funded investigators globally, with 300 scholarly publications. He was the Founding Principal Investigator and Director of the Miami Clinical Translational Science Institute and Chair Emeritus of the Department of Public Health Sciences.

Recognized for his work with disadvantaged populations, he has received honors from the US National Institute on Mental Health, the American Psychological Association, and the Society for Prevention Research. He has served on various national advisory councils, including those for the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Most recently, Dr. Szapocznik was the Founding Director of the Secretariat for the Panel for a Global Public Health Convention.

Ana Palacio ​

Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director, UM Public Health Policy Lab

Dr. Ana Palacio is a Professor of Clinical Medicine and clinician investigator at the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Miami and the Miami VA Health System. She holds a Master’s in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University with a concentration in epidemiology.

Early in her career, she contributed to health reform in Ecuador, focusing on universal health insurance. At the University of Miami, she developed an algorithm to identify racial minorities in clinical trials and implemented a system to collect Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) data for integration into the UHealth electronic health record (EHR)

A prolific researcher, Dr. Palacio conducts clinical studies with significant minority representation and co-leads a Long COVID clinic at the Miami VA Health System, which serves all of Florida. She is currently building a Practice-Based Research Network of Long COVID clinics to improve care models for post-viral chronic illnesses. 

Anicca Liu, MPH, MA​

Director, University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab

Anicca Liu, MPH, MA is Assistant Director of the University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab, where she oversees operations and strategic development of the lab’s global and domestic policy research and advocacy priorities. She is dedicated to advancing systems, policies and norms that work to harmonize individual and organizational behaviors for collective health and flourishing.

In addition to investigating the improvement of global collaboration and governance of health emergencies, Anicca is interested in how infectious diseases intersect with noncommunicable conditions, including substance use and mental health, within a global context of increasing urbanization, climate change and economic inequality.

Anicca holds a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from the University of Pennsylvania, and graduate degrees in public health and international administration from the University of Miami. She is currently pursuing doctoral studies at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice.

Jacob N. Batycki, MPH​

Director, Education and Advocacy, UM Public Health Policy Lab

Jacob N. Batycki, MPH is Director of Education and Advocacy in the University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab of the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

Jacob leads the lab’s U.S. partnerships and collaborations and directs the lab’s U.S.-centered global health policy work. As a researcher-advocate, Jacob conducts health policy studies and translates science into application to promote equitable and accountable global health governance reform and health system preparedness.

Prior to this work, Jacob’s research centered around design and evaluation of substance abuse and co-morbid mental health and infectious disease clinical trials, with special interest in gender- and sexuality-minority populations. He also has a background in public health curriculum development, teaching, and accounting.

Jacob was previously an ORISE Fellow in the Epidemiology Workforce Branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, and completed his MPH Capstone with the Inter-American Development Bank’s Salud Mesoamerica Initiative in Panama City, Panama.

Jacob holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Miami and a B.S. in Biology (Honors) and a B.A. in Spanish (Honors), with minors in Bioethics and Women’s Studies & Gender Studies, from Loyola University Chicago.

Rachel Waldman, MA​

Senior Research Associate, UM Public Health Policy Lab

Rachel Waldman serves as the Senior Research Associate for the University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab. She holds a Master of Arts in Medical Anthropology from the University of Miami, where she graduated summa cum laude. Her research interests include trust in public health, disease stigmatization, and community-centered approaches to public health.

Prior to her work at the Policy Lab, Rachel engaged in research around the knowledge, behaviors, and attitudes of Orthodox Jewish communities in Miami toward genetic and infectious diseases. She was also previously a member of a research team that explored the delivery of remote therapeutic interventions and the mental health impacts of discrimination and police violence on Haitian youths in Miami.