Michael J. Weiss Named Administrator of Informatics at Populytics, Inc.

Populytics, Inc., leading regional population health management and health care data analytics firm, and wholly owned subsidiary of Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), has named Michael J. Weiss, MPH, Administrator of Informatics. With LVHN for 15 years, he has taken on increasing responsibility across the enterprise, specifically focused on research and business functions.

Populytics is a regional pioneer in data analytics and informatics and has been able to apply the expertise of its talented staff to positively impact the value of care delivered to patients. At the same time, the company has maximized collaborations with insurers to create excellent outcomes for health care providers. Weiss will be at the forefront of this process, overseeing the teams responsible for intake, normalization, and aggregation of both payer claims and EMR data. In addition, he will lead the technical reporting of quality metrics to payers and those that support the physician incentive programs that help keep providers engaged in meeting quality benchmarks.

“In his new role, Mike holds responsibility for the increasingly complex data science strategy required to align with the Quadruple Aim,” says Mark Ungvarsky, Vice President Payer & Provider Informatics. “The end goal is to increase quality for our patients and reduce the cost to our commercial and government payer partners.”

Weiss is a highly valued consultant, both in Populytics and throughout the LVHN enterprise. This is due to his specific expertise in the areas of emerging payer-provider relationships and the financial impact of analytic information. In past roles, he served as a key source for health care policy, value-based reimbursement program development, and outcomes and performance measurement to Populytics’ internal and external clients. He regularly collaborates with payer and provider executive leadership, who rely on his expertise in health economics, statistical design, and outcomes analysis and reporting. In addition, he continues to provide guidance on legislation and the evaluation of alternative payment models across both government and commercial payers.

Weiss previously held other positions across LVHN with the goal of using data to increase quality and reduce costs. These included Manager, Analytics, for the LVHN Accountable Care Organization and Population Health Scientist, in the Health Systems Research division, where he provided analytics support for network-wide initiatives surrounding business, clinical research, and systems reform as they related to population health.

Weiss holds a Bachelor of Science in biology with a chemistry minor from Wagner College, Staten Island, NY, and a Master of Public Health in epidemiology from Rutgers University School of Public Health. He served as an adjunct professor in applied epidemiology and biostatistics at DeSales University, Center Valley, Pa., and has held various advisory roles in mentorship initiatives under LVHN and other educational institutions.

He is a frequent speaker at national conferences in tactics and strategies to transition from fee-for-service to value-based reimbursement. Weiss has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles in both clinical and health care services research. His history over the past decade includes participation on numerous health-based boards, leadership groups, and task forces representing strategy, finance, research, education, analytics, process improvement, revenue optimization, and clinical integration.