Is cash a health intervention? With Rita Hamad

Does income support improve health, and is there enough evidence to know which related policies to enact?

Rita Hamad joins Salma to discuss her research on the effects of social policies—including income tax credit, child tax credit, and paid family leave—on population health. They begin with the evidence on different forms of income support, highlighting that many policies have not run long enough or at scale to be evaluated, and showing, through Rita’s work on prenatal health, that the design and timing of income support shape its effects. They then explore what counts as sufficient evidence to settle a policy question, noting that policymakers should look at the whole body of evidence, as well as local values and politics, and consider health alongside other outcomes before enacting a policy, with evaluation built in from the start. Rita also stresses the importance of separating the presentation of evidence from advocacy for a specific policy. Finally, Rita and Salma discuss NIH’s stated plan to step back from funding policy research, the removal of the CDC’s PRAMS data on prenatal and postpartum health, and the tension over whether foundations should do work the federal government should be doing.

This episode invites you to reflect on what the effects of different policies are, what counts as sufficient evidence, and what else is needed to turn that evidence into policy.

About the guest:

Rita Hamad is Professor of Social Epidemiology and Public Policy and Director of the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies and Social Policies for Health Equity Research (SPHERE) at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research focuses on understanding the pathways through which between social factors like poverty and education with racial and socioeconomic health disparities and understanding the effect of social and economic policies on health.

Notes:

Acronyms used in this episode include:

• AI = Artificial intelligence
• CBO = Congressional Budget Office
• CDC = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• DHS = Demographic and Health Surveys
• Diff-in-diff / DiD = Difference-in-differences
• HIV/AIDS = Human Immunodeficiency Virus / Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• NIH = National Institutes of Health
• PRAMS = Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System
• SPHERE = Social Policies for Health Equity Research Center
• TANF = Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
• WHO= World Health Organization

Useful resources:

• Hamad R, Handler A, Hastings P, Shulman H. US Maternal and Infant Health Data: Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) in Crisis National PRAMS Convening Report. The Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies; 2026.
• Wang G, Jackson KE, Hamad R. The Impact of the 2021 Child Tax Credit on Perinatal Health: Evidence From the Expansion and Postexpiration Periods. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2026;71(3):108360. doi:1016/j.amepre.2026.108360
• Committee on Policies and Programs to Reduce Intergenerational Poverty, Board on Children, Youth, and Families, Committee on National Statistics, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Reducing Intergenerational Poverty. (Duncan GJ, Gootman JA, Nalamada P, eds.). National Academies Press; 2024:27058. doi:17226/27058
• Wells WM, White JS, Collin DF, Wang G, Modrek S, Hamad R. Effects of US state paid family leave policies on perinatal and postpartum health: a quasi-experimental analysis. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2026;195(1):246-254. doi:1093/aje/kwaf010
• Hamad R, Dore EC, Wright E, Steedle R, Cowan SK. Economic Policies to Address Poverty as a Fundamental Determinant of Health: Existing Evidence and Future Directions. Annual Review of Public Health. 2026;47(1):177-195. doi:1146/annurev-publhealth-090924-033323
• Karasek D, Collin DF, Turner C, Hubbard E, Batra A, Hamad R. Critical Windows for Perinatal Health: Evaluating the Impacts of Timing of Poverty Alleviation Benefits. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2026;71(1):108319. doi:1016/j.amepre.2026.108319
• Wang G, Hamad R, White JS. Advances in Difference-in-differences Methods for Policy Evaluation Research. Epidemiology. 2024;35(5):628-637. doi:1097/EDE.0000000000001755

If you have any questions or feedback, email us at [email protected].

Host: Dr. Salma Abdalla

Producer: Catalina Melendez Contreras

Production assistant: Mateo Diaz Quiroz

Marketing and social media: Kinkini Bhaduri

Research for episode preparation: Kinkini Bhaduri

Music: Eden Avery / Melting Glass from Epidemic Sound https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/2fqOXWpHab/

The views and opinions expressed by the guest in this episode do not necessarily reflect those of their institution, the funders, or the podcast team.