Karen Eggleston

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Karen Eggleston, PhD

  • Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
  • Center Fellow at the Center for Health Policy and the Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research
  • Faculty Research Fellow of the National Bureau of Economic Research
  • Faculty Affiliate at the Stanford Center on China's Economy and Institutions
  • Director of the Asia Health Policy Program, Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center
  • Stanford Health Policy Associate
  • Faculty Fellow at the Stanford Center at Peking University, June and August of 2016

Shorenstein APARC
Stanford University
Encina Hall E301
Stanford, CA 94305-6055

(650) 723-9072 (voice)
(650) 723-6530 (fax)

Biography

Karen Eggleston is a Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) at Stanford University and Director of the Stanford Asia Health Policy Program at the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center at FSI. She is also a Fellow with the Center for Innovation in Global Health at Stanford University School of Medicine, and a Faculty Research Fellow of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). Her research focuses on government and market roles in the health sector and Asia health policy, especially in China, India, Japan, and Korea; healthcare productivity; and the economics of the demographic transition.

Eggleston earned her PhD in public policy from Harvard University and has MA degrees in economics and Asian studies from the University of Hawaii and a BA in Asian studies summa cum laude (valedictorian) from Dartmouth College. Eggleston studied in China for two years and was a Fulbright scholar in Korea. She served on the Strategic Technical Advisory Committee for the Asia Pacific Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and has been a consultant to the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the WHO regarding health system reforms in the PRC.

publications

Journal Articles
May 2025

Dementia Care in a Rapidly Aging Society

Author(s)
Dementia Care in a Rapidly Aging Society
Journal Articles
May 2025

The Evolution of Age-Friendly Jobs in a Rapidly Ageing Economy

Author(s)
The Evolution of Age-Friendly Jobs in a Rapidly Ageing Economy
Journal Articles
May 2025

Impact of Urban-Rural Health Insurance Integration on Mental Health Among Rural Adults in China

Author(s)
Impact of Urban-Rural Health Insurance Integration on Mental Health Among Rural Adults in China

Current research

In The News

Chinese agriculture working couple standing side by side on the top of a rice terraces at Ping An Village looking to the camera.
News

China’s Unified Health Insurance System Improved Mental Well-Being Among Rural Residents, Study Finds

New research by a team including Stanford health economist Karen Eggleston provides evidence about the positive impact of China’s urban-rural health insurance integration on mental well-being among rural seniors, offering insights for policymakers worldwide.
China’s Unified Health Insurance System Improved Mental Well-Being Among Rural Residents, Study Finds
Close-up on an elderly womna's hands holding colorful puzzle pieces.
News

Confronting the Challenge of Dementia Care: Lessons from South Korea

A comprehensive review of rapidly aging South Korea’s efforts to mitigate the social and economic costs of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, co-authored by Stanford health economist Karen Eggleston, provides insights for nations facing policy pressures of the demographic transition.
Confronting the Challenge of Dementia Care: Lessons from South Korea
An older Korean man fills out a job application at a elderly persons' job fair in Seoul.
News

In Rapidly Aging South Korea, the Economy Is Slow in Creating “Age-Friendly” Jobs

Despite the nation’s rapidly aging demographics, South Korea's economy has not adapted as well as the United States, a new study finds. The researchers, including Stanford health economist and director of the Asia Health Policy Program at APARC Karen Eggleston, show that age-friendly jobs attract a broad range of workers and that structural barriers in the labor market influence which groups can access these roles.
In Rapidly Aging South Korea, the Economy Is Slow in Creating “Age-Friendly” Jobs

Selected Multimedia