Student Positions

As a recent graduate from the University of California, Riverside, where I earned my B.S. Biology, I had the opportunity to intern with the CHBRP. In this role, I created an explainer examining the barriers to chronic condition management and conducted an analysis of health disparities in California by documentation status. In addition, I supported analysis of HR-1 by developing a timeline of the major Medicaid provisions and gained exposure to the Legislature through attending meetings with CHBRP's stakeholders, which provided valuable insights into how diverse perspectives and evidence shape health policy decisions in California. Through this experience, I strengthened my research and policy analysis skills, expanded my understanding of California’s health policy landscape, and learned how to communicate complex health information in a clear and accessible manner. Most importantly, I had the privilege of working alongside a wonderful and intelligent team, whose mentorship inspired me to continue my journey at the intersection of medicine and policy advocacy!

As a rising third-year undergraduate at UCLA double-majoring in Cognitive Science and Public Affairs, I am fortunate to have spent the past few months as a summer intern with CHBRP. For my major project, I developed a legislative landscape scan of US policies regulating AI in health insurance, focusing on transparency, oversight, and utilization management. Through this experience, I learned how to analyze individual bill provisions while synthesizing similarities and making the most important points accessible to readers. Another project I greatly valued involved researching the term “provider” and offering CHBRP staff recommendations regarding its use in writing. The opportunity to apply research to a practical setting, develop my own ideas, and deliver a presentation to CHBRP staff was incredible and sparked thoughtful discussions I was grateful to be a part of. I also created an explainer on maternal health disparities for my final project, expanding my knowledge of crucial barriers to healthcare access. This internship allowed me to work with welcoming, knowledgeable, and diligent staff who not only expanded my knowledge of many niches of insurance and health policy but also emphasized the significance of every word in policy-oriented writing. Receiving this mentorship as an undergraduate was extremely valuable, as it provided me with research, policy analysis, and communication skills I can apply in my coursework and future professional pursuits. I am excited to carry these teachings with me as I continue my pre-law journey and highly recommend this internship experience to anyone interested in diving deeper into health policy and research. 

I completed my summer internship with CHBRP while pursuing the joint Master of Health and Medical Sciences at UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health and the MD program at UCSF School of Medicine. My individual project focused on conducting a literature review examining how cost-sharing mechanisms, such as high-deductible health plans, coinsurance, and preventive service mandates under the Affordable Care Act, affect health care utilization across income groups. In addition, I contributed to efforts summarizing changes to infertility benefits, telehealth disparities research, and the development of communications materials for stakeholders. Through this experience, I gained valuable insight into the intersection of health economics and policymaking, and I strengthened my ability to translate complex research into policy-relevant findings. My time at CHBRP reinforced my commitment to using evidence-based approaches to advance equitable access to care and deepened my vision of policy as a critical tool for physician advocacy.

“As a Graduate Health Policy intern with CHBRP, I analyzed and documented the mandate to cover or offer requirements of existing California health insurance benefit mandates, developed a framework of how to determine whether a health insurance benefit mandate supplants another health insurance benefit mandate, and attended legislative hearings on California’s efforts to implement a health benefits exchange. For my project, I wrote a report on how California’s existing health insurance benefit mandates around mammography screening compare against each other, existing federal health insurance benefit mandates, and the Affordable Care Act’s essential health benefit coverage requirement.”

“I was a health policy graduate researcher at CHBRP while I was earning my PhD at UC Berkeley in Health Services & Policy Analysis. I primarily worked on creating two resources -- one on preventive service coverage requirements through the Affordable Care Act and in California policy, and the other on characteristics of states' mandate evaluation programs and their initial work with state-based health insurance exchanges. The internship helped me learn about the complicated dynamic between state and federal policy.”

“I completed my Bachelor of Science in Political Science at Santa Clara University and went on to obtain a Master’s of Public Policy (MPP) from the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. During my Master’s program, I completed the CHBRP Health Policy Summer Internship. After finding the internship experience valuable, I extended my role through graduation. During my internship, I worked on several projects including a brief on pediatric dental and vision essential health benefits (EHBs), and an analysis of workplace wellness programs. After completing my Master’s degree, I was hired by CHBRP as a Policy Analyst, where I led the bill analysis for SB 1053 (2014), worked on CHBRP reauthorization, and gained valuable experience to help me continue along my career path.”

“My time at CHBRP was enormously helpful for a career in health policy. As a result of my time at CHBRP, I better understood health insurance, the economics of health care, and the landscape of health policy decision-making in California. As part of my internship, I researched similar CHBRP-like organizations across the country, which exposed me to many state and national organizations that are active in health policy. Overall it was a great learning experience!”

 "During my summer internship at CHBRP, I worked to create an internal report on how mental health benefits are covered for Medi-Cal managed care beneficiaries, specifically focusing on how coverage was affected by Affordable Care Act implementation. Through this project, I was able to learn more about conducting research, interviewing key stakeholders, writing for a diverse audience, and producing high-quality policy reports. I had a great internship at CHBRP and was able to use the skills and experience I acquired there to find my ideal job of working as a health policy consultant upon graduating from my Master of Public Health (MPH) program."

“I was a CHBRP intern while completing my Master’s of Science degree in Nursing Health Policy at UCSF. CHBRP is an ideal learning environment where interns are encouraged to work closely with faculty members across the UC system in addition to receiving mentorship and guidance from the knowledgeable CHBRP staff. CHBRP is a small team, which provides maximal opportunities for the intern to get involved on various projects and contribute in a meaningful way. It is housed within the UC Office of the President which allows the intern to meet various people in UC Health and gain a broader understanding of how UC Health and UCOP operate. As a graduate intern, my responsibilities included learning to manage projects, giving presentations at faculty meetings, and coordinating/attending stakeholder meetings. My intern project was to work with a group of UC faculty members to research and write a white paper on how exemptions of Medi-Cal from benefit mandate and repeal bills may affect racial/ethnic disparities in California. The CHBRP internship is an excellent way to learn about how health insurance works in California and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in health policy!”

"As a Graduate Intern with CHBRP, I was encouraged to learn and develop new skills while contributing to a variety of projects with CHBRP staff and faculty. I value the unique role CHBRP has in conducting objective analyses for the California Legislature. Working through an objective lens allowed me to gain a holistic understanding of health insurance and policy. In addition, the structure of the internship balanced mentorship with applying skills to team and independent projects. The projects I worked on created a foundation of health policy knowledge and communication skills that I can build on throughout my career in pharmacy. In particular, my independent project was to produce a white paper on Outpatient Prescription Drugs. The goal of this white paper was to simplify complex pharmacy benefit topics and support CHBRP reports. Overall, this internship is a unique opportunity to learn and work in a supportive environment." 

"I completed my summer internship with CHBRP while a student in the Masters of Science- Health Policy program at UCSF. During my internship I worked with CHBRP staff and faculty to create a brief detailing the continued impacts of implementation of the Affordable Care Act. From this experience, I gained a better understanding of health insurance and health policy at both the state and federal levels. My time at CHBRP also included meeting with various stakeholders from state agencies, legislative staff, and the health insurance industry. CHBRP’s location, within the UC Health Division of the University of California Office of the President, also afforded me unique opportunities including meetings with managers from multiple UC system-wide health initiatives. Overall, this was an incredibly valuable experience!"

"As an MPP candidate of the inaugural, graduate cohort at the UC Riverside School of Public Policy (and a non-native to California), the CHBRP internship allowed me a unique opportunity to learn in-depth about California health policymaking. Since I am familiar with the ACA implementation in New York and how it impacted the state, interning at CHBRP gave me additional perspectives regarding the evolving health policy landscape. During the summer, I drafted documents related to CHBRP’s cost impact analyses and estimates of health insurance sources in California. I also participated in stakeholder meetings with legislative committees, state agencies, and health plans/insurers in Sacramento. My experience at CHBRP is valuable, and the skills I honed during my internship will greatly aid my public health and health policy career."

"Working with CHBRP has given me a glimpse into the unique role they hold within the health policy sphere as an independent, evidence-based analysis group for the California Legislature. Not only did I learn about health insurance, benefit mandates, and policymaking, I also practiced skills in facilitation, both quantitative and qualitative analysis, and project management. My primary summer project involved the updating of CHBRP’s approach document for estimating impacts of benefit mandates on racial/ethnic health outcome disparities. I appreciated the opportunity to dive deep into a topic area whilst being given both guidance and independence throughout the duration of the project. As an intern, I was also able to connect with UC faculty and key stakeholders in the Bay Area and Sacramento. My experience as a Health Policy Graduate Intern with CHBRP has been highly valuable and provided me with skills and knowledge that I can build upon as I continue my career in public health."

"As an MS Health Policy student at the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing, I was looking for an internship that would allow me to engage in the health policy arena. It was a privilege to participate in the graduate student summer internship, which give me a unique opportunity to see how CHBRP crafts evidenced-based policy analysis in cooperation with academic researchers. Scheduling and attending meetings with stakeholders in Sacramento provided an opportunity to build a foundation of understanding around navigating how to discuss policies with nuance and tact. I also became more familiar with the process of maintaining and uploading reports on to online academic databases. My primary project for the summer was to create a document detailing the landscape of social determinants health activity and legislation in California. Overall, this internship experience was valuable and provided me with knowledge I will use to continue on my path in the public health, academic, and policy arenas."

"As a health policy PhD student, I was seeking a research-oriented summer experience outside of the traditional academic setting. I was very fortunate for the opportunity to work with CHBRP as a graduate student summer intern. CHBRP’s role as a neutral and nonpartisan purveyor of evidence-based policy analysis allowed me to see research in action – both at the office in Berkeley and in our many stakeholder meetings in Sacramento.  In addition to updating a brief on federal preventive services mandates and crafting a presentation on the state budget, I was tasked with preparing an in-depth brief discussing the Affordable Care Act’s essential health benefits (EHBs).  I became very familiar with federal statutes and regulations as I distilled these in order to explain complicated EHB changes to CHBRP’s audience. As I continue my academic journey in health policy analysis research, I remain grateful for the excellent support, mentorship, and connections I received from CHBRP."

"As an MPP candidate at UCR’s School of Public Policy, I searched for health policy opportunities that would allow me to learn as a beginner while applying my experiences and skills from my previous roles. As a summer Health Policy intern at CHBRP, I can confidently say that I am on my path to becoming a subject matter expert in the field of health insurance and policy thanks to the wonderful CHBRP staff. I was one of the first interns to complete this internship fully remotely, and am so grateful for being able to continue my internship experience through COVID-19. I had the chance to work on several projects throughout the summer. My primary project was to create a resource on the medical necessity determination process in California. In addition, I updated the Health Insurance Benefit Mandates in California State and Federal Law document by adding additional information on how the existing benefit mandates are applicable to the insurances of Medi-Cal beneficiaries enrolled in DMHC regulated plans. Some smaller projects included working on CHBRP’s social media  by posting content on health insurance. I connected with stakeholders and learned how to remain neutral and non-partisan in public policy analysis writing. Overall, this incredible internship at CHBRP has become the foundation of health policy knowledge for me."

"As a Graduate Health Policy Intern at CHBRP, I was able to gain in-depth experience working on California health policymaking issues. I learned about different facets of state regulated health insurance, the policymaking process, and CHBRP’s unique role in providing non-partisan and evidence-based analysis to the State Legislature. Over the summer, my main project was creating a new resource document on outpatient prescription drug cost sharing. It involved doing detailed research, interviewing content experts, writing for a diverse audience, and simplifying complex cost sharing issues. During my internship I was also able to participate in interviews with stakeholders and update a resource on federal preventive services. Overall, interning at CHBRP was a great opportunity to expand my skills and knowledge and work in an incredibly supportive environment."

"As an MPH candidate at UC Berkeley's School of Public Health, I sought an internship where I could immerse myself in the California health policy landscape. Throughout my summer interning with CHBRP, I learned about state-regulated health insurance, the legislative process, and CHBRP's unique role in providing independent, evidence-based analysis of proposed health insurance benefit mandates. My primary project was to create a resource discussing deductibles that could be referenced by CHBRP's deductible-related analyses. Other responsibilities included updating CHBRP key resources, attending stakeholder meetings, and collaborating with other interns and staff on an anti-racism effort. I enjoyed the opportunity to engage with staff in weekly meetings, one-on-one conversations, and informational interviews. My biggest takeaway from the internship experience is the importance of leadership and mentorship. The CHBRP staff offered mentorship which allowed me to discover what I value most in my professional career. Additionally, I received detailed feedback on my writing, allowing me to practice how to be correct, clear, and concise when communicating. Overall, I loved working at CHBRP. My summer internship experience was filled with great people, a welcoming work environment, and intellectually stimulating work."

"As an MPH student studying Health Policy & Management at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, I was looking for a summer internship that would provide an opportunity for me to apply analytic skills and learn more about health policy in California. The Graduate Student Internship at CHBRP helped me fulfill these goals and exceeded my expectations. Over the summer, I worked on a number of projects, but my primary project was to create a resource about balance billing and the federal No Surprises Act. Creating a workplan, conducting a literature review, simplifying complex ideas, and making revisions to the resource on a short timeline allowed me to hone my research, project management, and writing skills. Additionally, I helped CHBRP research racism within the health care delivery system and the 2021-22 California state budget. Overall, I was very grateful for the opportunity to intern at CHBRP and to work alongside an organized and supportive team. I will carry what I learned during the summer throughout my career."

"As a Master of Public Policy student at the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy, I sought a summer experience that would allow me to develop my analysis skills, learn more about the landscape of health policy in California, and apply my existing public health expertise to an impactful, policy-focused project. CHBRP exceeded my expectations in these regards and more. I delved into projects on several topics, including network adequacy, high deductible health plans, and the impact of racism on health. I had the chance to meet with several CHBRP Task Force members and stakeholders, and I was able to work closely with other highly motivated CHBRP interns. The CHBRP team was truly invested in my learning and growth as a policy analyst and writer. I was challenged, supported, and valued for my expertise and interests. The experience cemented my interest in health policy, and I am excited to continue my career in this field."

"As a recent graduate from UC Berkeley, I applied for an internship with CHBRP through Health Career Connection to obtain the real-life exposure to health policy that I had desired throughout my undergraduate studies. My time at CHBRP granted me the exact exposure that I had been seeking in a professional environment that allowed me to thrive. During my summer at CHBRP, I devoted my time to creating a resource on California’s aged 65 and older population. I also spent my time researching the role of racism in health services research, scheduling stakeholder meetings, and tracking bill progress. I enjoyed every moment of my time at CHBRP and I was able to reaffirm my passion to pursue a career in health policy. The mentorship, support, and constructive criticism I received from staff helped me improve my skills and gain confidence in my capabilities. My internship at CHBRP allowed me to further expand my knowledge of health policy and apply this knowledge in a way that was impactful and rewarding."

"As a Master of Public Health student at UCLA with an emphasis on Health Policy, I was looking for a summer internship where I could obtain real word health policy analysis experience while also learning more about the policymaking process in California. CHBRP was the perfect internship to accomplish both of my goals. My primary summer project with CHBRP was devoted to beginning to understand if enrollees in high deductible health plans utilize preventive services the same as enrollees in less-than- high deductible plans in scenarios where the deductible was waived or prohibited. Through my work on this project, I was given the fantastic opportunity to meet with many of CHBRP’s inspiring Task Force members and gain their insight both about my project and the larger topic of health policy. CHBRP’s staff was amazing in providing consistent feedback on my work as well as developing many interesting side projects that I worked on throughout the summer, such as investigating the impact of racism on health insurance and the proper usage of the term “provider” in CHBRP analyses. I am extremely grateful for my summer with CHBRP, and I hope to carry the many lessons I learned this summer for the rest of my career in health policy."