Heritage Foundation Leadership for America

Robert A. Book is a Senior Research Fellow in Health Economics at The Heritage Foundation's Center for Data Analysis.

Before joining Heritage in December 2008, Book taught economics courses adapted to the needs of senior military officers and civilian national security professionals at the National Defense University 's Industrial College of the Armed Forces. While there as an Assistant Professor, he annually served on a faculty team that led a group of 16 students through an in-depth, five-month study of the health care industry.

Book also has taught economics and mathematics courses at George Mason University, Loyola University in Chicago and the University of Chicago. He also worked as a Senior Associate for The Lewin Group, a health care policy research and consulting firm in Falls Church, Va. While there, he conducted a detailed study of the cost structure of the specialty pharmacy industry in the wake of the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act.

At Lewin, he also analyzed the growth of diagnostic imaging and cost changes resulting from improved technology; forecasted effects of Medicare payment changes on the long-term, acute care, and rehabilitation hospital industries; analyzed costs in pharmacy and physician practices; and studied the impact of medication therapy management by pharmacists.

In 2002, Book earned a doctorate in economics and an MBA from the University of Chicago for his thesis on "Public Research Funding and Private Innovation: The Case of the Pharmaceutical Industry." He also has a master's in computational and applied mathematics from Rice University, and bachelor's degrees in mathematics and history from Duke University.

An Eagle Scout, Book serves as Scoutmaster for Troop 1818 in Fairfax, Va.