Kurt Hager is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Epidemiology, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences. Dr. Hager’s interests lie at the intersection of structural determinants of health, food insecurity, and government nutrition and health insurance programs. His current research focuses on the effectiveness of nutritional interventions and policies on chronic disease in the U.S, including evaluations of produce prescriptions and medically tailored meals integrated into clinical care. At UMass Chan Medical School, Dr. Hager is evaluating the effectiveness of the Health-Related Social Needs, which addresses food and housing insecurity under Massachusetts’s Medicaid Section 1115 Waiver. Dr. Hager has training in nutritional epidemiology and quantitative research methods and his recent studies have included policy modeling, economic evaluations, and quasi-experimental studies. Dr. Hager’s involvement in policy initiatives underscores his commitment to translating science into evidence-based policy. These include former projects at the Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation at Harvard Law School, as a writer with the Task Force on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, and steering committee member of the National Produce Prescription Collaborative. He is currently a member of the American Heart Association's Value Assessment Task Force for the Healthcare by Food Initiative. His research has been covered by the Washington Post, National Public Radio, CBS Primetime, and other media outlets.
Health Informatics And Implementation Science
Biostatistics And Health Services Research
Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Barbara Helen Smith Chair in Preventive & Behavioral Medicine
Population and Quantitative Health Sciences
Prevention Research Center at UMass Chan
Healthcare Delivery and Population Sciences at UMass Chan - Baystate
Hager K, Cudhea FP, Wong JB, Berkowitz SA, Downer S, Lauren BN, Mozaffarian D
Hager K, Cudhea FP, Wong JB, Berkowitz SA, Downer S, Lauren BN, Mozaffarian D. Association of National Expansion of Insurance Coverage of Medically Tailored Meals With Estimated Hospitalizations and Health Care Expenditures in the US. JAMA Netw Open. 2022 10 03; 5(10):e2236898.
Association of National Expansion of Insurance Coverage of Medically Tailored Meals With Estimated Hospitalizations and Health Care Expenditures in the US.
Hager K, Mozaffarian D. The Promise and Uncertainty of Fruit and Vegetable Prescriptions in Health Care. J Nutr. 2020 11 19; 150(11):2846-2848.
The Promise and Uncertainty of Fruit and Vegetable Prescriptions in Health Care.
Hager K, De Kesel Lofthus A, Balan B, Cutts D
Hager K, De Kesel Lofthus A, Balan B, Cutts D. Electronic Medical Record-Based Referrals to Community Nutritional Assistance for Food-Insecure Patients. Ann Fam Med. 2020 05; 18(3):278.
Electronic Medical Record-Based Referrals to Community Nutritional Assistance for Food-Insecure Patients.
The western journal of emergency medicine
Martel ML, Klein LR, Hager KA, Cutts DB. Emergency Department Experience with Novel Electronic Medical Record Order for Referral to Food Resources. West J Emerg Med. 2018 Mar; 19(2):232-237.
Emergency Department Experience with Novel Electronic Medical Record Order for Referral to Food Resources.
Hager K, Shi P, Li Z, Chui K, Berkowitz SA, Mozaffarian D, Chhabra J, Wilken J, Vergara C, Becker E, Small S, Ling B, Cash SB, Folta SC, Zhang FF
Hager K, Shi P, Li Z, Chui K, Berkowitz SA, Mozaffarian D, Chhabra J, Wilken J, Vergara C, Becker E, Small S, Ling B, Cash SB, Folta SC, Zhang FF. Evaluation of a Produce Prescription Program for Patients With Diabetes: A Longitudinal Analysis of Glycemic Control. Diabetes Care. 2023 06 01; 46(6):1169-1176.
Evaluation of a Produce Prescription Program for Patients With Diabetes: A Longitudinal Analysis of Glycemic Control.
Wang L, Lauren BN, Hager K, Zhang FF, Wong JB, Kim DD, Mozaffarian D
Journal of the American Heart Association
Wang L, Lauren BN, Hager K, Zhang FF, Wong JB, Kim DD, Mozaffarian D. Health and Economic Impacts of Implementing Produce Prescription Programs for Diabetes in the United States: A Microsimulation Study. J Am Heart Assoc. 2023 08; 12(15):e029215.
Health and Economic Impacts of Implementing Produce Prescription Programs for Diabetes in the United States: A Microsimulation Study.
Hager K, Du M, Li Z, Mozaffarian D, Chui K, Shi P, Ling B, Cash SB, Folta SC, Zhang FF
Circulation. Cardiovascular quality and outcomes
Hager K, Du M, Li Z, Mozaffarian D, Chui K, Shi P, Ling B, Cash SB, Folta SC, Zhang FF. Impact of Produce Prescriptions on Diet, Food Security, and Cardiometabolic Health Outcomes: A Multisite Evaluation of 9 Produce Prescription Programs in the United States. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes. 2023 09; 16(9):e009520.
Impact of Produce Prescriptions on Diet, Food Security, and Cardiometabolic Health Outcomes: A Multisite Evaluation of 9 Produce Prescription Programs in the United States.
Folta SC, Li Z, Cash SB, Hager K, Zhang FF
Folta SC, Li Z, Cash SB, Hager K, Zhang FF. Adoption and implementation of produce prescription programs for under-resourced populations: clinic staff perspectives. Front Nutr. 2023; 10:1221785.
Adoption and implementation of produce prescription programs for under-resourced populations: clinic staff perspectives.
Hager K, Emanuel E, Mozaffarian D. Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Premium Cost Growth and Its Association With Earnings Inequality Among US Families. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 01 02; 7(1):e2351644.
Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Premium Cost Growth and Its Association With Earnings Inequality Among US Families.
Landauer R, Seligman H, Pomeranz JL, Hager K, Mozaffarian D
The Journal of law, medicine & ethics : a journal of the American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics
Landauer R, Seligman H, Pomeranz JL, Hager K, Mozaffarian D. Is that Hospital Food Pantry an Illegal Patient Inducement? Analysis of Health Care Fraud Laws as Barriers to Food and Nutrition Security Interventions. J Law Med Ethics. 2023; 51(4):889-899.
Is that Hospital Food Pantry an Illegal Patient Inducement? Analysis of Health Care Fraud Laws as Barriers to Food and Nutrition Security Interventions.
Li Z, Zhang FF, Cash SB, Hager K, Trevino L, Folta SC
Li Z, Zhang FF, Cash SB, Hager K, Trevino L, Folta SC. Caregiver perceptions of a pediatric produce prescription program during the COVID-19 pandemic. Front Nutr. 2024; 11:1304519.
Caregiver perceptions of a pediatric produce prescription program during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hanson E, Albert-Rozenberg D, Garfield KM, Leib EB, Ridberg RA, Hager K, Mozaffarian D
Hanson E, Albert-Rozenberg D, Garfield KM, Leib EB, Ridberg RA, Hager K, Mozaffarian D. The evolution and scope of Medicaid Section 1115 demonstrations to address nutrition: a US survey. Health Aff Sch. 2024 Feb; 2(2).
The evolution and scope of Medicaid Section 1115 demonstrations to address nutrition: a US survey.
Folta SC, Burch J, Alcusky M, Ash AS, Hager K, Terranova J, Zhang FF, Anyanwu O, Li Z, Mozaffarian D
Folta SC, Burch J, Alcusky M, Ash AS, Hager K, Terranova J, Zhang FF, Anyanwu O, Li Z, Mozaffarian D. Facilitators and barriers to reach and enrollment into a medically tailored meals program within a section 1115 Medicaid pilot: clinic staff perspectives. Front Public Health. 2025; 13:1526564.
Facilitators and barriers to reach and enrollment into a medically tailored meals program within a section 1115 Medicaid pilot: clinic staff perspectives.
Deng S, Hager K, Wang L, Cudhea FP, Wong JB, Kim DD, Mozaffarian D
Deng S, Hager K, Wang L, Cudhea FP, Wong JB, Kim DD, Mozaffarian D. Estimated Impact Of Medically Tailored Meals On Health Care Use And Expenditures In 50 US States. Health Aff (Millwood). 2025 Apr; 44(4):433-442.
Estimated Impact Of Medically Tailored Meals On Health Care Use And Expenditures In 50 US States.
Hager K, Sabatino M, Williams J, Ash AS, Halasa-Rappel Y, Flahive JM, Min HS, Sing G, Buckler S, Rich A, Bowman J, Himmelstein J, Alcusky MJ
Hager K, Sabatino M, Williams J, Ash AS, Halasa-Rappel Y, Flahive JM, Min HS, Sing G, Buckler S, Rich A, Bowman J, Himmelstein J, Alcusky MJ. Medicaid Nutrition Supports Associated With Reductions In Hospitalizations And ED Visits In Massachusetts, 2020-23. Health Aff (Millwood). 2025 Apr; 44(4):413-421.
Medicaid Nutrition Supports Associated With Reductions In Hospitalizations And ED Visits In Massachusetts, 2020-23.
Seligman HK, Angell SY, Berkowitz SA, Elkind MSV, Hager K, Moise N, Posner H, Muse J, Odoms-Young A, Ridberg R, Troxel AB, Yaroch AL, Volpp KG
Seligman HK, Angell SY, Berkowitz SA, Elkind MSV, Hager K, Moise N, Posner H, Muse J, Odoms-Young A, Ridberg R, Troxel AB, Yaroch AL, Volpp KG. A Systematic Review of "Food Is Medicine" Randomized Controlled Trials for Noncommunicable Disease in the United States: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2025 Jul 29; 152(4):e32-e46.
A Systematic Review of "Food Is Medicine" Randomized Controlled Trials for Noncommunicable Disease in the United States: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.
Branley CE, Lee MR, Person S, Hager K, Lemon SC
Branley CE, Lee MR, Person S, Hager K, Lemon SC. Association between parent-perceived neighborhood support on food insufficiency and public benefit participation among US children. Prev Med Rep. 2025 Sep; 57:103174.
Association between parent-perceived neighborhood support on food insufficiency and public benefit participation among US children.