Caitlin McMurtry (she/they) combines theories and methods from public health, economics, and political science to examine the political determinants of health in America. Her current research focuses on the magnitude of political polarization during public health emergencies, the structural origins of (dis)trust in government and its relationship to vaccine hesitancy and gun violence, and the role of ballot initiatives in health politics and policy. Broadly, her research seeks to understand how public opinion, politics, and government affect health and inequity (and vice versa) in the U.S. McMurtry’s experience working with officials at all levels of government sharpened her focus on the need for timely, actionable research that is accessible to policymakers and the public. From 2009-2013, she conducted public health research and translated findings for Kansas legislators in Topeka and helped to establish, fund, and run a community health coalition for the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas. Later, she interned for a member of the U.S. Senate and joined a team of researchers conducting rapid-response survey research during the COVID-19 pandemic for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under the Trump and Biden administrations. McMurtry’s research has appeared in peer-reviewed academic journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Annals of Family Medicine, Milbank Quarterly, and Health Services Research, and has received coverage in news outlets such as the Washington Post and NPR. McMurtry teaches courses on health policy and gun violence, and in 2024, McMurtry received the Teaching Excellence Award for Full-Time Faculty at the Brown School. She also co-leads the Medical School’s Advocacy and Global Health EXPLORE Pathway and co-instructs a course on Infectious Diseases and Health Equity. McMurtry is a faculty affiliate of the Center for Advancing Health Services, Policy & Economics Research (CAHSPER), a faculty scholar at the Institute for Public Health, and one of the Spring 2025 Faculty Fellows at the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equity. Caitlin McMurtry Assistant Professor PhD, Harvard University Office Phone: 314-935-3159 Office Location: Hillman 226 Email: mcmurtry@wustl.edu Download CV Areas of Focus: Health policy and politics Trust in government Public opinion research Gun violence and policy State politics and policymaking Racism and discrimination In The News Brown School Welcomes 12 Dynamic New Faculty Members, Fall 2022 September 8, 2022