HMS Dean Jeffrey S. Flier (left) stands with Leonard Schaeffer, donor and namesake of the professorship, and Michael Chernew, first incumbent of the Leonard D. Schaeffer Professorship in Health Care Policy. Image: Aaron Washington
HMS Dean Jeffrey S. Flier (left) stands with Leonard Schaeffer, donor and namesake of the professorship, and Michael Chernew, first incumbent of the Leonard D. Schaeffer Professorship in Health Care Policy. Image: Aaron Washington
Leonard Schaeffer is a longtime philanthropic partner, adviser and friend to Harvard Medical School. Michael Chernew is a leader in the field of health care policy and an outstanding member of the HMS faculty.
At a ceremony in Gordon Hall, their careers were connected in a celebration honoring them both. On October 28, 2013, Chernew was appointed the first incumbent of the Leonard D. Schaeffer Professorship in Health Care Policy, a quadrangle professorship reserved for distinguished senior researchers working to improve the intersection of health care delivery and public policy.
“Leonard and Michael share a passion for understanding and solving the nation’s pressing health care challenges,” Jeffrey S. Flier, dean of the Faculty of Medicine, said during the celebration attended by the families of both men and many other distinguished guests.
“Leonard, a veteran of both the public and private health care sectors, has dedicated his professional life to finding ways to improve the quality of care while controlling costs—a commitment shared by Mike, whose academic career is focused on understanding the factors that affect health care spending, evaluating innovative payment methods and advising health care policy organizations,” said Flier.
Schaeffer, the Judge Robert Maclay Widney Chair at the University of Southern California, is member of the HMS Board of Fellows and the Health Care Policy Advisory Council. He has also held prominent positions in industry and in government.
Chernew has published prolifically and served on numerous advisory bodies in the public interest. He is currently vice chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, an independent agency that advises the U.S. Congress on issues affecting Medicare. The principal investigator of several research studies, he frequently lectures on reforming the nation’s health care system.
