GFCB Economics Staff

Health Economics, Microeconomics, Statistics

Ph.D., Michigan State University, Economics, 2023;

M.A., Michigan State University, Economics, 2018;

B.A., Hope College, Economics and Mathematics, 2016

Katlyn Hettinger is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Western Kentucky University. Her research focuses on health economics, with particular interests in how health insurance design and public policy influence health care utilization and maternal and infant health outcomes. Her work has been published in journals such as the Journal of Public Economics, Health Affairs, and JAMA Network Open. She teaches courses in health economics, microeconomics, and statistical analysis. She also holds an appointment in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and mentors interdisciplinary research collaborations through the PIER-Health program. She earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in Economics from Michigan State University and a B.A. in Economics and Mathematics from Hope College.

“Intertemporal Substitution in Response to Non-Linear Health Insurance Contracts” Journal of Public Economics, 258, 2026.

“Prepregnancy Health Care Engagement Among American Indian and Alaska Native People Before and After the Affordable Care Act” with Danielle Gartner, Heather Howard-Bobiwash, and C. Margerison. Health Equity, 8(1), 2024. 

"Impacts of the 2021 Child Tax Credit Advance Payments on Low Birth Weight in the United States" with C. Margerison, Tim Bruckner, Ralph Catalano, Y. Zamani-Hanks and Tim Michling. JAMA Network Open, 6(8), 2023.

“Postpartum Medicaid Eligibility Expansions and Postpartum Health Measures” with C. Margerison. Population Health Management, 26(1), 2023.

“Medicaid Expansion Associated with Some Improvements in Perinatal Mental Health” with C. Margerison, Robert Kaestner, Sidra Goldman-Mellor, and Danielle Gartner. Health Affairs, 40(10), 2021.