Dr. Kavita Patel is a nonresident fellow in economic studies at the USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health Policy, and a primary care physician.

She served in the Obama Administration as director of policy for the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement in the White House. As a senior aide to Valerie Jarrett, President Obama’s senior advisor, she played a critical role in policy development and evaluation of policy initiatives connected to health reform, financial regulatory reform, and economic recovery issues. As deputy staff director on health for Sen. Edward Kennedy, she served as a policy analyst and aide to the Senator and was part of the senior staff of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee.

Patel earned her medical degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center and her master’s in public health from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Expertise: Health care reform, primary care medicine, Medicare, cost of health care, vulnerable populations, disparities in health care, financial regulatory reform

Location: Washington, D.C.

Email: kpatel@brookings.edu

Twitter: @kavitapmd

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