History

The Division of Health Policy and Management began in 1978, with the founding of the Center for Health Services Research, a research and teaching unit within the Academic Health Science Center at the University of Minnesota.

Spearheaded by John Kralewski, the center provided a focal point for health services research in an era of growing concern about health policy issues. Escalating health care costs were adversely affecting access to health services, but the causes and consequences were unclear. Future gains in health status clearly were as dependent on improvements in the effectiveness of the health care system as on new technologies or clinical discoveries.

By the early 1980s, with support from the Bush Foundation and the state legislature, the center had a core faculty and stable budget. As the center matured, faculty began to strengthen links to policymakers in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. Center faculty participated in the development and evaluation of several key policy initiatives in Minnesota, fostering a close working relationship with state policymakers that continues today.

Originally named Health Services Research and Policy, the Division officially changed its name to Health Policy and Management in 2006 to recognize the addition of the Masters of Healthcare Administration to its curriculum and the significant role of the Division in training leaders in Public Health Administration.