Senior Quantitative Researcher, Policy Implementation

Commence; Yuma (AZ); Remote; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Commence seeks a Senior Quantitative Researcher to drive CMS/CMMI APM implementation and evaluation, leveraging the Commence platform to generate actionable insights. You will collaborate with economists, data scientists, and engineers, translating policy goals into operational methods while mentoring junior staff and coordinating client work.

The role emphasizes hands-on analytics, model development, and rigorous evaluation design, with frequent cross-functional interaction and remote

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in economics, health services research, health policy, public health, or a related field with 4+ years of relevant experience; or a Master’s degree with 8+ years.
• Hands-on experience implementing and/or evaluating CMS/CMMI alternative payment models; experience with both implementation and evaluation is preferred.
• Working knowledge of at least two of: participant screening and monitoring, beneficiary attribution, payments and financial incentive design, quality measurement, comparison group design, and quasi-experimental evaluation methods (difference in difference, event study).
• Experience with Medicare and/or Medicaid administrative and claims data (e.g., CCW, IDR, VRDC)
• Clear and concise writing for federal audiences; proposal-writing experience.

Responsibilities

• Translate model design documents and policy goals into operational methodologies and specifications using Medicare and Medicaid claims, enrollment, and programmatic data, as well as other data sources including surveys and census data.
• Implementation: Develop, refine, and implement value-based care methodologies, including participant screening and monitoring; beneficiary attribution; payment mechanisms, benchmarking and financial adjustments including risk adjustment; selection, adaptation, and scoring of quality measures.
• Evaluation: Design and conduct evaluations, including monitoring methodologies, comparison groups (e.g., propensity score matching, synthetic controls) and quasi‑experimental designs (e.g., difference‑in‑differences, event studies) to estimate impact on healthcare spending, utilization, and quality.
• Partner with economists, data scientists, and engineers to conduct research, create prototypes, and apply ML‑based methods on the Commence platform to develop novel approaches to conduct implementation and evaluation work.
• Lead and collaborate on the development of methodology documents, evaluation reports, and briefings for CMMI model teams, turning findings into clear, actionable recommendations.
• Lead and collaborate on the design and write technical approaches for CMS/CMMI and other federal agency proposals and serve in key project roles; mentor junior researchers and analysts.
• Manage teams, set priorities, coordinate tasks, engage clients and stakeholders, and ensure high-quality reports and products are delivered on time and within budget.

Skills

SAS

R

Python

SQL

Databricks

Power BI

Tableau

Education

Ph.D. in economics/health policy or related field

Master’s degree with 8+ years of experience

Tools

Databricks

Power BI

Tableau

SAS

Job description

Commence seeks a Senior Quantitative Researcher to drive CMS/CMMI APM implementation and evaluation, leveraging the Commence platform to generate actionable insights. You will collaborate with economists, data scientists, and engineers, translating policy goals into operational methods while mentoring junior staff and coordinating client work.

The role emphasizes hands-on analytics, model development, and rigorous evaluation design, with frequent cross-functional interaction and remote