Pinar Karaca Mandic

Pinar Karaca Mandic is a Distinguished McKnight University Professor and C. Arthur Williams Jr. Professor in Healthcare Risk Management at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, Department of Finance. She serves as Founding Director of the Business Advancement Center for Health (BACH) and previously led the Medical Industry Leadership Institute (MILI) from 2017-2021.

Her educational background includes:

• PhD in Economics, University of California at Berkeley (2004)
• BA in Economics and Mathematics (High Honors), Swarthmore College (1998)

As a health economist, her research focuses on improving healthcare value and equity through analysis of medical technology diffusion, clinical evidence uptake, insurance market dynamics, and social determinants of health. Her work examines interactions between patients, providers, technology producers, and payers under regulatory frameworks.

Her extensive publication record spans top journals including Journal of Political Economy, JAMA, Health Affairs, and Health Economics. Research trends show strong emphasis on real-world evidence generation, policy impact assessment, and innovative financing mechanisms for social care integration.

Major scientific recognitions include:

• National awards for the PRISM mobile health technology (AHRQ Step-Up Challenge winner)
• Multiple Stevie Awards for the University of Minnesota COVID-19 Hospitalization Tracking Project
• Prestigious AACSB and INFORMS innovation awards
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and NIH grant recognitions

She actively advises through leadership roles at BACH and MILI, securing major grants from NIH, AHRQ, American Cancer Society, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation totaling over $20M. Her current projects include NIH-funded biosimilars research and sustainable financing models for social drivers of health. She co-founded XanthosHealth (NIH SBIR/STTR awardee) and leads the national COVID-19 hospitalization tracking initiative with significant media impact including New York Times and NPR partnerships.