Research Summary

I am nationally and internationally recognized as an expert on the economics of tobacco and have been conducting studies related to costs of smoking and secondhand smoke exposure for over 25 years. My research team was one of the first groups to develop econometric models of smoking-attributable costs, and these models represent the state-of-the-art today. We have refined and improved these models and have used them to study lifetime smoking-attributable costs, smoking-attributable costs to Medicaid and Medicare, costs to each of the states and to each of California's counties, costs to Hispanics and Blacks, and the impact of tobacco control expenditures on healthcare expenditures in California. I am involved in ongoing research studying the economic cost of secondhand smoke exposure in California, the US, and China. I am also currently working on the development of economic cost models for other tobacco products. I served as an expert witness for 12 states in litigation that the Attorneys General brought against the tobacco industry to recover Medicaid costs. I was also an expert witness for similar litigation on behalf of Blue Cross Blue Shield. I regularly present my research on the economics of tobacco at national and international conferences and at tobacco control forums, and I have testified before the California legislature. I have also conducted research related to economic effects of tobacco use on health and healthcare costs in India and China. I have mentored a number of postdoctoral fellows, including Dr. John, who studied the cost of smoking in India, Dr. Yao, who has worked with me on the economic impact of secondhand smoke in rural China and tobacco purchasing behavior in China, Dr. Lindsay who worked with me on secondhand exposure of smokers, and Dr. Chambers, who is working with me on the economic impact of tobacco policies within the context of healthcare utilization among vulnerable populations with chronic disease. I have co-authored papers with all of my fellows.

Research Funding

  • September 19, 2013 - August 31, 2018 - Improved Models to Inform Tobacco Product Regulation, Co-Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NCI, Sponsor Award ID: P50CA180890
  • September 19, 2013 - August 31, 2018 - Improved Models to Inform Tobacco Product Regulation, Co-Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NCI, Sponsor Award ID: P50CA180890
  • September 19, 2013 - August 31, 2018 - Improved Models to Inform Tobacco Product Regulation, Co-Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NCI, Sponsor Award ID: P50CA180890
  • September 19, 2013 - August 31, 2018 - Improved Models to Inform Tobacco Product Regulation, Co-Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NCI, Sponsor Award ID: P50CA180890

Education

Stanford University, Stanford, CA, B.A., 1976, History, Economics
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, M.S., 1981, Economics
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, Ph.D., 1983, Economics

Honors & Awards

  • Hal Luft Mentoring Award in Health Services and Health Policy Research, UCSF, 2012
  • Helen Nahm Research Award, UCSF, 2010
  • Honorary Visiting Professorship, Beijing Normal University, Beijing,, 2001-2006

Selected Publications

  1. Wang Y, Watkins SL, Sung HY, Yao T, Lightwood J, Max W Health Care Utilization of Menthol and Non-menthol Cigarette Smokers.  View on PubMed
  2. Limaye VS, Max W, Constible J, Knowlton K Estimating The Costs Of Inaction And The Economic Benefits Of Addressing The Health Harms Of Climate Change.  View on PubMed
  3. Kim KM, Max W, White JS, Chapman SA, Muench U Do penalty-based pay-for-performance programs improve surgical care more effectively than other payment strategies? A systematic review.  View on PubMed
  4. Yao T, Sung HY, Huang J, Chu L, St Helen G, Max W The impact of e-cigarette and cigarette prices on e-cigarette and cigarette sales in California.  View on PubMed
  5. Watkins SL, Thrul J, Max W, Ling PM Real-World Effectiveness of Smoking Cessation Strategies for Young and Older Adults: Findings From a Nationally Representative Cohort.  View on PubMed
  6. Watkins SL, Thrul J, Max W, Ling PM Cold Turkey and Hot Vapes? A National Study of Young Adult Cigarette Cessation Strategies.  View on PubMed
  7. Keeler C, Max W, Yerger VB, Yao T, Wang Y, Ong MK, Sung HY Effects of Cigarette Prices on Intention to Quit, Quit Attempts, and Successful Cessation Among African American Smokers.  View on PubMed
  8. Keeler C, Max W, Yao T, Wang Y, Zhang X, Sung HY Smoking Behavior in Low- and High-Income Adults Immediately Following California Proposition 56 Tobacco Tax Increase.  View on PubMed
  9. Johnson JK, Stewart AL, Acree M, Nápoles AM, Flatt JD, Max WB, Gregorich SE A Community Choir Intervention to Promote Well-Being Among Diverse Older Adults: Results From the Community of Voices Trial.  View on PubMed
  10. Zhang T, Ren J, Zhang X, Max W Medical and socio-demographic characteristics associated with patient-perceived continuity of primary care: A cross-sectional survey in Hangzhou, China.  View on PubMed
  11. Oh A, Patel K, Boscardin WJ, Max W, Stephens C, Ritchie CS, Smith AK Social Support and Patterns of Institutionalization Among Older Adults: A Longitudinal Study.  View on PubMed
  12. Limaye VS, Max W, Constible J, Knowlton K Estimating the Health-Related Costs of 10 Climate-Sensitive U.S. Events During 2012.  View on PubMed
  13. Limaye VS, Max W, Constable J, Knowlton K. Estimating the health-related costs of 10 climate-sensitive US events during 2012  View on PubMed
  14. Max WB, Stark BB, Sung HY, Offen NB Deaths from smoking and from HIV/AIDS among gay and bisexual men in California, 2005-2050.  View on PubMed
  15. Coombs LA, Max W, Kolevska T, Tonner C, Stephens C Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants: An Underestimated Workforce for Older Adults with Cancer.  View on PubMed
  16. Yao T, Sung HY, Wang Y, Lightwood J, Max W Healthcare Costs of Secondhand Smoke Exposure at Home for U.S. Children.  View on PubMed
  17. Sung HY, Penko J, Cummins SE, Max W, Zhu SH, Bibbins-Domingo K, Kohatsu ND Economic Impact of Financial Incentives and Mailing Nicotine Patches to Help Medicaid Smokers Quit Smoking: A Cost-Benefit Analysis.  View on PubMed
  18. Max WB, Sung HY, Lightwood J, Wang Y, Yao T Modelling the impact of a new tobacco product: review of Philip Morris International's Population Health Impact Model as applied to the IQOS heated tobacco product.  View on PubMed
  19. Wang Y, Sung HY, Lightwood J, Chaffee BW, Yao T, Max W Health Care Utilization and Expenditures Attributable to Smokeless Tobacco Use Among US Adults.  View on PubMed
  20. Sung HY, Wang Y, Yao T, Lightwood J, Max W Polytobacco Use and Nicotine Dependence Symptoms Among US Adults, 2012-2014.  View on PubMed

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