Pratyasha Acharya

Pratyasha Acharya is a joint University of Melbourne and University of Toronto, Ph.D. candidate specialising in health economics.

After making a conscious shift from the corporate to the social development sector, Pratyasha undertook her second Master's degree, a Master of Public Health at Harvard University. As a public health specialist, Pratyasha worked with not-for-profit organisations and provided technical support for the scale-up of pre-funded primary healthcare community-based insurance models. She has also contributed to a number of Health Systems Research projects in India, and has supported the health economic analyses of development impact bonds as a consultant.

Pratyasha's research focuses on public health insurance and long-term healthcare funding, particularly in the developing world. She has a special interest in the efficacy of Indian public health insurance programs. As lower- and middle-income countries aim for universal health coverage (UHC),  Pratyasha's PhD study has important policy implications in unpacking the equity implications for different vulnerable sub-groups across the population spectrum. Her research raises important questions about the contextual factors that might contribute to the success of such targeted insurance schemes.

PhD Supervisor

Professor Ajay Mahal

Co-supervisors

Professor Sumit Kane

Professor Beverley Essue (University of Toronto)