News

Mueller appointed to Rural Health Task Force

Published on July 24, 2019

Professor Keith Mueller.
Keith Mueller

University of Iowa professor Keith Mueller has been appointed to serve on the Bipartisan Policy Center’s new Rural Health Task Force. Mueller is professor and head of the Department of Health Management and Policy at the University of Iowa College of Public Health and directs the Rural Policy Research Institute Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis.

The task force will produce policy recommendations to help improve the health and health care of the 60 million Americans living in rural communities.

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show those living in rural areas are at a greater risk of dying from heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory disease. These communities also face alarming rates of hospital closures, health care worker shortages, and geographic challenges to getting timely care compared to those living in urban areas.

Task force members include: Mr. David Blair, chairman, Accountable Health Solutions; former Rep. Henry Bonilla of Texas; former Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota; Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director, American Public Health Association, and former secretary, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; Mr. Chris Jennings, BPC fellow and founder and president, Jennings Policy Strategies; Dr. Jennifer McKay, medical information officer, Avera Health; Dr. Karen Murphy, former Pennsylvania secretary of health; Mr. Ronnie Musgrove, former governor of Mississippi; former Rep. Mr. Tom Tauke of Iowa; and Dr. Gail Wilensky, senior fellow, Project Hope, and former administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration.

The BPC is a think tank based in Washington, D.C., that actively fosters bipartisanship by combining the best ideas from both parties to promote health, security, and opportunity for all Americans.