Alex Chan

JAMA viewpoint article "Reimagining Transplant Center Incentives Beyond the CMS IOTA Model" by Alex Chan, MPH, PhD; Alvin E. Roth, PhD. Includes table outlining a holistic performance model for kidney transplants, listing desired outcomes.

💬 Viewpoint: The CMS IOTA model incentivizes increased kidney transplants by rewarding volume, organ acceptance, and short-term graft survival, but risks remain for equitable access and long-term patient outcomes among those with end-stage kidney disease.

ja.ma/4s8ZLTE

She is brilliant, she is modest, she can stage a comeback. Alysa Liu is the QUEEN. QED.

The microsociology & contingency of int'l diplomacy

What are the behavioral mechanisms of communications in diplomacy? How do factors exogenous to an interaction affect & inform the meaning of behavior? Intriguing questions motivate 2 book projects Seanon Wong discussed in his CASBS fellows seminar

Taboo and Repugnant Roundup (Week of 2/2/26) "Dangerous" prediction markets, a game (not really) for the organ trafficker in your life, and Alex Chan on market design

This week’s Taboo & Repugnant Roundup: a NYT guest essay questioning whether prediction markets are dangerous, the game Organ Attack discussed on the Market Design blog, and a short HBS video on markets and transplantation featuring @alex8chan.bsky.social

Redesigning transplant and OPO center incentives (Chan and Roth in JAMA; Bae, Sweat, Melcher and Ashlagi in JAMA Surgery)

Incentives matter (you get more of what you measure).
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2026/01/rede...

Dovetails with Chan-Roth 2024 @jpolecon.bsky.social: aligning incentives across the transplant supply chain can saves lives and billions! @CMSGov #transplantation #Healthcare @alroth.bsky.social

Congratulations Tommy!

Mike Rees, the founder of the Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation (APKD) describes how (with the help of a grant from Stanford) the APKD is helping Brazilian transplant docs get kidney exchange going there.
#brazil #econsky #medicine
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2026/01/kidn...

www.legacy.com/us/obituarie... John Kagel cultivated the experimental lab and culture at Pitt that we still enjoy. we all know his auction expts, but he also had a long-standing interest in animal behavior, e.g. Demand Curves for Animal Consumers, Commodity-Choice Behavior with Pigeons as Subjects

much discussion of the wages of medical residents ignores that many residency positions are paid at rates established by Medicare, which also has a big influence on the number of residency positions.
#econsky #medicine
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/12/medi...

Today's NYT writes about the largest kidney exchange network, a private company with opaque finances called National Kidney Registry (NKR). The story also raises questions about some of the promises NKR makes through a voucher program.
#econsky #medicine
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/12/nkr-...

Erik Brynjolfsson interviewed in Newsweek

Erik has been thinking about AI for a long time (even if not as long as the folks I posted about yesterday).
#econsky
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/12/erik...

Explanations on Mute: Why We Turn Away From Explainable AI | Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard We live in an age where the call for transparent or “Explainable AI” (XAI) has never been louder. Businesses agree, with 85% believing transparency is

Why do we turn away from Explainable AI (#XAI)/#interpretability? Strategically or unwittingly. @harvard.edu #HBS

d3.harvard.edu/explanations...

The NYT reports with concern the number of foreign citizens receiving organs from deceased donors. One question I have that I haven't seen addressed is how many foreign citizens who die while visiting the US become deceased organ donors?
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-...
#econsky

New job at Cambridge!

Professorship of Public Policy

www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/profess...

Economics of Race and Stratification, Spring 2026

DEADLINE TODAY: The NBER Race and Stratification Working Group will have its annual meeting on Friday, March 27, 2026. @franciscaantman.bsky.social, Bocar Ba, Robynn Cox and I are organizing the program. Submit your paper today! @nber.org #Econsky www.nber.org/conferences/...

Check out the rest of Pitt JM candidate @jiaweilyu.bsky.social 's exciting research too: sites.google.com/view/jiaweil...

My first Southern Economic Association SEA ⁦‪conference! 📢📢 giving a talk on defaults at 2:00-3:45 🌴🌴 I am hoping to meet more folks! (Please DM or email, esp. job market candidates) #southerneconomicassociation #econtwitter @southerneconj.bsky.social

Taboo and Repugnant Roundup (Week of 11/17) Thoughts on taboo trades, repugnant markets, and academia this week

A NYT Magazine feature on a 68-year-old woman facing felony charges after forging documents for a surrogacy arrangement raises sharp questions about parental age limits, reproductive autonomy, and criminalization. More analysis in this week’s review:
open.substack.com/pub/kimberly...

Had an amazing time at the @pennchibe.bsky.social conference!! Thanks to Kevin Volpp and the incredible organizing committee! (Thanks @katymilkman.bsky.social!!)

See you there John!

⏰ We are hiring on the junior market! ⏰

Multiple open positions at the Oxford Department of Economics:
econjobmarket.org/positions?sh...

2 positions associate professor open field, 1 position development econ.

cc @oxfordecondept.bsky.social

Market Design Impact Award to Hassidim, Romm, and Shorrer

Practical market design is alive and well in Israel.
#econsky
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/10/mark...

Current laws on organ donation might reasonably lead one to conclude that society disapproves of saving lives via transplantation.
#econsky #medicine #repugnance
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/10/fune...

Funeral expense reimbursement as a strategy to enhance organ donation and transplantation access - npj Health Systems npj Health Systems - Funeral expense reimbursement as a strategy to enhance organ donation and transplantation access

New paper by @alex8chan.bsky.social & Kurt Sweat, via @alroth.bsky.social
Abstract: We propose amending [NOTA] to permit reimbursement of funeral expenses for deceased organ donors, analogous to current practices for whole-body donors.

The most anticipated book for 2026! I pre-ordered my copies already!

Seeking PhD students for 2026 @ UT Dallas! In the Early Cognition & Communication Lab, we explore the development of communication, abstract thought, and social bonds and consider the role of early exposure to AI. Apply by Nov 15, 2025 bbs.utdallas.edu/departments/... #phdlife #DevSci #CogSci

My friend Mark Granovetter’s famous paper on #weakties is cited more than 3X more than ⁦‪Acemoglu, Johnson, Robinson‬⁩’s ⁦‪Nobel-winning masterpiece - it’s worth a read! (A delicious, congruent pairing is work by the ⭐️W.D.Eberle Chair ⁦‪@Stanford.edu‬⁩)

Back at #Tucson for #ESA conference!! It’s going to be 🤩! Can’t wait to see everyone! PLUG: stop by tomorrow (😇😇 Friday 10am for the AI session at Ocotillo), I want your feedback and thoughts on my new work on Explainable AI #XAI #interpretability

(In)Citeful economists
#econsky #academicsky
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/09/cita...