I am an Assistant Professor of Economics in the Department of Economics and Finance at Louisiana State University (LSU) Shreveport. My research spans health economics, labor economics, public economics, and applied econometrics, with particular emphasis on how health systems, labor markets, family environments, and public policies shape economic and social well-being. I also serve as an Associate Editor for Applied Economics, Applied Economics Letters, and the Journal of Health Organization and Management.
I earned my PhD in Economics from the University of Memphis in December 2019, specializing in health, labor, and public economics. As a Fulbright Scholar, my academic training and research agenda have been guided by a commitment to rigorous empirical analysis, policy-relevant scholarship, and research questions with meaningful implications for both developed and developing economies.
Student's comment: "Dr. Osmani made learning ECON a walk in the park."
1. Osmani, A. R., Lubiani, G., & Okunade, A. “Hospital Efficiency and Productivity: Bias-Corrected Evidence from Control Function Estimation.” International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, forthcoming. ABDC rated.
2. Osmani, A. R. “The Cost of Producing Health Human Capital: Evidence from Medical Education in Afghanistan.” Journal of Applied Economics, forthcoming. ABDC rated.
3. Osmani, A. R., Khudri, M. M., & Hussey, A. “Rural-Urban Disparities in Body Mass Index of Women: Evidence from Counterfactual Decomposition Methods.” Applied Economics, forthcoming. ABDC rated.
4. Osmani, A. R. “The Human Capital Cost of Premature Mortality: Evidence from U.S. Counties.” Applied Economics, July 2026. ABDC rated.
5. Osmani, A. R. “From Governance to Growth: Role of Institutional Quality in Economic Freedom.” International Review of Economics & Finance, June 2026. ABDC rated.
6. Osmani, A. R. “Understanding Cost Variation in Medical and Health Sciences Education: An Institutional Perspective.” Health Policy Open, June 2026.
7. Osmani, A. R. “The Unequal Effects of Weekday Television on Children's Academic and Behavioral Skills.” Economic Modelling, May 2026. ABDC rated.
8. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “The Effect of Supply-Side Conditional Cash Transfers on Healthcare Outcomes for Women and Children: Evidence from Experimental and Observational Data.” Journal of Population Research, April 2026. ABDC rated.
9. Osmani, A. R., Elbahnasawy, N., & Shaughnessy, T. “The Role of Digital Governance Instruments and Internet Usage on Government Stability and Regime Durability.” Applied Economics, March 2026. ABDC rated.
10. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “Impact of Supply-Side Conditional Cash Transfers on Household Family Planning Decisions: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Afghanistan.” Social Science & Medicine, October 2025. ABDC rated.
11. Osmani, A. R., Moriya, A., & White-Means, S. I. “Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Mental Health among Breast Cancer Patients and Survivors in the US.” Health Services Research, June 2025. ABDC rated.
12. Osmani, A. R., & Khudri, M. M. “The Affordable Care Act and Racial Disparities in Healthcare Utilization: New Evidence from Employer Mandate.” The Review of Black Political Economy, June 2025. ABDC rated.
13. Osmani, A. R., Khudri, M. M., & Okunade, A. “Determinants of Unhealthy BMI among Women of Childbearing Age in Bangladesh.” Journal of Population Research, September 2024. ABDC rated.
14. Osmani, A. R., White-Means, S. I., & Warren, C. L. “The Organizational Impact of Presenteeism among Key Healthcare Workers due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.” The Review of Black Political Economy, March 2022. ABDC rated.
15. Osmani, A. R., Okunade, A., Ayangbayi, T., & Okunade, A. “Children's Health Capital Investment: Effects of U.S. Infant Breastfeeding on Teenage Obesity.” Econometrics, December 2021. ABDC rated.
16. Osmani, A. R. “Conditional Cash Incentive and Use of Health Care Services: New Evidence from a Household Experiment.” Journal of Family and Economic Issues, August 2021. ABDC rated.
17. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “A Double-Hurdle Model of Healthcare Expenditures across Income Quintiles and Family Size: New Insights from a Household Survey.” Journal of Risk and Financial Management, July 2021. ABDC rated.
18. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “Effects of Life Expectancy on Economic Growth: New Results Using the Flexible Box-Cox Power Transformation Model.” Applied Economics Letters, October 2020. ABDC rated.
19. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “Cancer Survivors in the Labor Market: Evidence from Recent US Micro-Panel Data.” Economic Modelling, August 2019. ABDC rated.
20. Osmani, A. R., & White-Means, S. I. “Job Market Prospects of Breast v/s Prostate Cancer Survivors in the US: A Double-Hurdle Model of Ethnic Disparities.” Journal of Family and Economic Issues, June 2019. ABDC rated.
21. Osmani, A. R., & Okunade, A. “Technology, Productivity and Costs in Healthcare.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Economics and Finance, August 2018.
Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Economics, Louisiana State University Shreveport (2022- Now)
Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Louisiana Monroe (2020- 2022)
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in Economics, University of Memphis (2019- 2020)
Research Assistant with Shelley White-Means, University of Tennessee Health Science Center (2016- 2020)
Graduate Instructor, University of Memphis (2016-2019)
Health Economics Officer, Futures Group/USAID/MOPH (2011-2014)
LSU Shrevport, College of Business Faculty Research Seminar, March 2026
American Economic Association (ASSA/AEA/iHEA session) Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, January 2025
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD, 2024
American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon) Annual Meeting, St. Louis, MO, 2023
American Economic Association (ASSA/AEA) Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA, 2023
American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon) Annual Meeting, Austin, TX, 2022
American Economic Association (AEA) Annual Meeting, Virtual, 2021
American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon) Annual Meeting, Virtual, 2021
Western Economic Association International (WEAI) Annual Meeting, Virtual, 2021
American Economic Association (ASSA/AEA) Annual Meeting, 2020 (Link)
American Economic Association (ASSA/AEA) Annual Meeting, 2018
International Health Economics Association (iHEA) Annual Meeting, 2017
Midwestern Economic Association (MEA) Annual Meeting, 2018
Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) Translational Science Meeting , 2017
Academy Health Annual Research Meeting, 2020
William C. Woolf Endowed Rising Star Professorship in Business, LSU Shreveport, 2025-2027
Outstanding Faculty Award: Societal Impact, LSU Shreveport/ College of Business, 2024
AEA/URM travel Grant, San Antonio, TX, January 2024
Faculty Research and Development Grant, Louisiana State University (LSU) Shreveport, 2022-2024
West Cancer Foundation Research Grant 2021-2022
George T. Walker Professorship in Entrepreneurship, University of Louisiana Monroe ( 2020-2023)
Full Tuition Fulbright Scholarship, PhD in Economics, U.S. Department of State (2014-2019)
Economic Impact Assessment of French Medical Institute for Children (2019- 2020)
Doctoral Student Teaching Excellence Award, University of Memphis (2017- 2018)
Economics Department Research Fund, University of Memphis ( 2017-2018)
Full Tuition Scholarship, MSc in Health Economics (BKK, Thailand), USAID/GoA (2011- 2013)
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Study-Visit Grants (2006-2008)
LSUS faculty member has paper accepted at national economics conference
LSUS professor explains how dockworkers strike could impact businesses, consumers
ULM professor awarded prestigious scholarship by American Society of Health Economists
ULM economics professor receives award, grant from West Cancer Foundation
University of Memphis Graduate School - Why I love my major
2022 Diversity Scholarship Recipients
Fogelman Focus Summer 2019 (Reshad Osmani received the outstanding PhD student Teaching Award)