Lauren is a senior research scientist who supports projects for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC). Her research focuses on subjects including health equity and health disparities; telehealth; chronic disease; and payment and delivery system reform.

For the CMS Office of Minority Health, Lauren supports efforts to advance equity across CMS programs and policies and improve health equity for racial, ethnic, sexual, and gender minorities, people with disabilities, and rural populations. For the CDC Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, she has worked on projects related to reducing disparities among populations disproportionately affected by cardiovascular disease.

For MedPAC, she manages annual focus groups with Medicare beneficiaries and clinicians about topics including coverage choices, access to care, care coordination, and changes to health care delivery, as well as interviews with providers, health systems, health plans, and other respondents. Lauren has worked on projects related to mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency for the CDC Foundation, the CDC Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support (CSTLTS), and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) National Nursing Home COVID-19 Coordinating Center.

Prior to joining NORC, Lauren worked with older adults in settings including a continuing care retirement community and a nursing and rehabilitation center.

Isaacs has a range of research presentations and publications, including examining the needs of diverse older adults and caregivers during public health emergencies, with insights from the COVID-19 pandemic (2021), and a case study on the CDC Foundation’s COVID-19 emergency response pilot project, focusing on knowledge brokering for older adults and caregivers (2023).