Michael Pesko is a health economist and an Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Georgia State University.

Dr. Pesko’s research uses retrospectively-collected data and quasi-experimental methods to evaluate health policy changes, especially those affecting insurance access, paid sick leave access, and harm reduction product use (e.g., e-cigarettes). Dr. Pesko has published over 40 peer-reviewed papers in journals such as Journal of Human Resources, Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Journal of Health Economics, American Journal of Health Economics, Health Economics, Health Affairs, Health Services Research, and American Journal of Public Health. His research has been supported by externally generated funds exceeding $2.8 million since 2016, including from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Cancer Institute, and the American Cancer Society.

Dr. Pesko was hired by GSU in 2017 as part of the second-century initiative (2CI). Prior to coming to GSU, Dr. Pesko was previously an Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medical College and a fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He graduated with a PhD in Economics in 2012.

Michael Pesko joined IZA as a Research Fellow in March 2021.