Alison Sexton Ward, PhD

Alison Sexton Ward is an economist with extensive experience on healthcare policy and pharmaceuticals. Her research has focused on economic valuations of various therapies and drug classes, and the economic implications of drug pricing policies. Alison has spent most of her career working with pharmaceutical manufacturers, government agencies, and non-profit health organizations on topics ranging from drug pricing policies, social value of new treatments, and long-term survival prediction. Prior to joining USC, she worked as a senior associate with the Brattle Group where she designed and led economic analysis in support of litigation on health-related issues. Alison joins the Value of Life Science Innovation (VLSI) team led by Karen Van Nuys.

She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota, a M.S in Ag and Resource Economics from the University California Davis, and a B.S. in Managerial Economics from the University of California Davis.

Recent Work

Medicare Coverage of Weight Loss Drugs Could Save the U.S. Billions of Dollars

The new weight loss drugs work, and represent huge value in treating obesity. Even though they are expensive, broader access to them via Medicare would end up saving the U.S. money.

By Dana Goldman, PhD and Alison Sexton Ward, PhD
Categorized in
- Articles
- Perspective
Can a Free Virtual Outreach Series Increase Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness?

Lack of awareness remains one of the biggest barriers to participation in Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials, especially among underrepresented groups. New ways to connect with communities and to expand access to clinical trials include a virtual Alzheimer’s disease informational series, which reveals important insights about how people engage with virtual content differently than at in-person events.

By Alison Sexton Ward, PhD, Nancy Lynn, MA and Desi Peneva, MS
Categorized in
- Articles
- Evidence Base
Comments on CBO Blog Post: “A Call for New Research in the Area of Obesity”

While there are significant data and methodological challenges to be overcome, there are better alternatives to simplistically extrapolating from the real-world data on AOM use that is currently available.

By Dana Goldman, PhD, Darius Lakdawalla, PhD, Karen Van Nuys, PhD, Alison Sexton Ward, PhD, Bryan Tysinger, PhD and Barry Liden, JD
Categorized in
- Articles
- Perspective
Comments to CMS on Proposed Guidance for Coverage with Evidence Development

Eleven Schaeffer fellows cosigned a comment letter to Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services providing recommendations on the proposed Coverage with Evidence Development Guidance.

By Alice Chen, PhD, Joseph Grogan, JD, Mireille Jacobson, PhD, Geoffrey Joyce, PhD, Darius Lakdawalla, PhD, Barry Liden, JD, Eugene Lin, MD, MS, Karen Van Nuys, PhD, William Padula, PhD, Alison Sexton Ward, PhD and Julie Zissimopoulos, PhD
Categorized in
- Articles
- Perspective
Benefits of Medicare Coverage for Weight Loss Drugs

The cumulative social benefits from Medicare coverage for new obesity treatments over the next 10 years would reach almost $1 trillion, or roughly $100 billion per year.
Categorized in
- Research
- White Paper

Alison Sexton Ward, PhD's contact information

Alison Sexton Ward, PhD's Bio

Recent Work

Medicare Coverage of Weight Loss Drugs Could Save the U.S. Billions of Dollars

Can a Free Virtual Outreach Series Increase Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness?

Comments on CBO Blog Post: “A Call for New Research in the Area of Obesity”

Comments to CMS on Proposed Guidance for Coverage with Evidence Development

Benefits of Medicare Coverage for Weight Loss Drugs