IHPI's 2025 Year in Review

Explore IHPI’s 2025 Year in Review for highlights of our collective work to advance the equity, quality, safety, and affordability of health care and improve health through collaborative research and learning, rigorous evidence, and robust communication and policy engagement.

POLICY BRIEF

Recognizing and Addressing the Addictive Nature of Ultra-Processed Foods

The average American now consumes more than half of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods. Research suggests the unique combination of ingredients commonly found in these products stimulates the brain in ways that can lead to addictive eating habits. To better understand these behaviors and the consequences for health, Ashley Gearhardt, Ph.D., M.Phil., M.S., professor of psychology, has done extensive research on this topic. This policy brief summarizes key research findings and implications for health policy.

Related:

• New studies say ultra-processed foods seen as global public health threat
• Many older adults—especially Gen X women—show signs of addiction to ultra-processed foods
• Food insecurity: Insights from IHPI researchers

Monthly Faculty News Digest

Read our monthly digest of IHPI expert news, highlights, achievements, and more to help you stay connected with the Institute. This month's news includes:

• Hashikawa, Ilgen and Waits earn top faculty awards
• Okanlami receives Neubacher Award
• Papaleontiou elected to American Thyroid Association Board of Directors
• Reisner receives André G. Stanley Memorial Health Equity Award from the American Public Health Association

Introducing the 2026–28 IHPI National Clinician Scholars Program (NCSP) Cohort

Beginning July 1, 2026, seven accomplished clinician-scholars will join IHPI and NCSP's dynamic network dedicated to advancing health care through rigorous research, leadership, and impact.

Medicaid expansion in North Carolina helps slow declines in buprenorphine access, study suggests 

A new study led by Jeff McCullough, Ph.D., associate professor of public health, and Kao-Ping Chua, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of pediatrics, examined how North Carolina’s Medicaid expansion affected access to buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder, for Medicaid-insured adults. This work was supported by IHPI’s Policy Sprint initiative.

Most older drivers aren’t thinking about the road ahead, poll suggests

A new National Poll on Healthy Aging report finds that 84% of adults age 65 and older drive at least once a week, and 62% drive most days. Yet fewer than half have planned for a future point when changes in their health might make it less safe for them to drive. The report was developed in collaboration with experts at the U-M Transportation Research Institute, one of the nation’s leading centers for mobility research.