Here is my recent Op-Ed in the LA Time: Opinion: Surgeons give patients too many opioids. A few simple steps could curb excess prescribing
Below are some of my favorite publications (full list on publications page):
Zachary Wagner, Manoj Mohanan, Rushil Zutshi, Arnab Mukherji, Neeraj Sood (2024). “What drives poor quality of care for child diarrhea? Experimental evidence from India”. Science. (link)
Media Coverage: Nature, NPR, Washington Post, and over 70 other outlets around the world
Renzhi Jing, Sam Heft-Neal, Daniel R. Chavas, Max Griswold, Zetianyu Wang, Aaron Clark-Ginsberg, Debarati Guha-Sapir, Eran Bendavid, Zachary Wagner. (2024). “Global Population Profile of Tropical Cyclone Exposure, 2002-2019”. Nature. (link)
Zetianyu Wang, Renzhi Jing, Sam Heft-Neal, Aaron Clark-Ginsberg, Debarati Guha-Sapir, Eran Bendavid, Zachary Wagner (2025). “The Impact of Tropical Cyclone Exposure on Infant Mortality in Low- and Middle-Income Countries”. Science Advances.
Risha Gidwani, Veronica Yank, Steven M. Asch, Lane Burgette, Aaron Kofner, Alex Peltz, Zachary Wagner (2025). “High-Deductible Health Plans and Receipt of Guideline-Concordant Care for Adults with Chronic Illness”. JAMA Network Open.
Zachary Wagner, Corrina Moucheraud, Manisha Shah, Alexandra Wollum, Willa H Friedman, William H Dow (2025). “Reducing Bias Among Health Care Providers: Experimental Evidence From Tanzania, Burkina Faso, and Pakistan”. Economic Journal
Zachary Wagner, Allison Kirkegaard, Louis T. Mariano, Jason N. Doctor, Xiaowei Yan, Stephen D. Persell, Noah J. Goldstein, Craig R. Fox, Chad M. Brummett, Robert J. Romanelli, Kathryn Bouskill, Meghan Martinez, Kyle Zanocco, Daniella Meeker, Satish Mudiganti,Jennifer Waljee, Katherine E. Watkins (2024). “Effect of peer comparison or guideline-based feedback vs no feedback on post-surgery opioid prescriptions: A cluster-randomized controlled trial”. JAMA Health Forum (link)
Pascaline Dupas, Basimenye Nhlema, Zachary Wagner, Aaron Wolf, Emily Wroe (2021). “Expanding Access to Clean Water for the Rural Poor: Experimental Evidence from Malawi”. AEJ: Economic Policy. (link)
Zachary Wagner, Barbara Mukasa, Josephine Nakakande, Chad Stecher, Uzaib Saya, Sebastian Linnemayr (2021). “The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on use of HIV care, antiretroviral therapy adherence, and viral suppression: An observational cohort study from Uganda”. JAIDS (link)
Zachary Wagner, John Bosco Asiimwe, and David I. Levine (2019). “When Financial Incentives Backfire: Evidence from a community health worker experiment in Uganda”. Journal of Development Economics (link)
Zachary Wagner, Sam Heft-Neal, Paul Wise, Robert E. Black, Marshall Burke, Ties Boerma, Zulfiqar A. Bhutta, Eran Bendavid (2019). “Women and Children Living in Areas of Armed Conflict: a geospatial analysis of mortality and orphanhood in Africa”. The Lancet Global Health (link)
Zachary Wagner, John Bosco Asiimwe, William H. Dow, and David I. Levine (2019). “The role of price and convenience in use of oral rehydration salts to treat child diarrhea: A cluster randomized trial in Uganda”. PLOS Medicine (link)
Zachary Wagner, Sam Heft-Neal, Zulfiqar A. Bhutta, Robert E. Black, Marshall Burke, Eran Bendavid (2018). “Armed Conflict and Child Mortality in Africa: a geospatial analysis”. The Lancet (link)
Zachary Wagner, Jeremy Barofsky, and Neeraj Sood (2015). “PEPFAR Funding Associated With An Increase In Employment Among Males in Ten Sub-Saharan African Countries.” Health Affairs (link)
Neeraj Sood and Zachary Wagner (2018). “Social Health Insurance for the Poor: Lessons from a Health Insurance Program in Karnataka, India”. BMJ Global Health (link)
Neeraj Sood, Eran Bendavid, Arnab Mukherji, Zachary Wagner, Somil Nagpal, and Patrick Mullen (2014). “Government health insurance for people below poverty line in India: quasi-experimental evaluation of insurance and health outcomes.” BMJ (link)