Harsha Thirumurthy, PhD

faculty photo
Founders Professor in Population Health
Department: Medical Ethics and Health Policy
Graduate Group Affiliations

Contact information
Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy
1111 Blockley Hall
423 Guardian Drive
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Office: (215) 746-0410
Education:
BA (Economics & Physics)
Oberlin College, 1998.
MA (Economics)
Yale University, 2002.
MPhil (Economics)
Yale University, 2003.
PhD (Economics)
Yale University, 2006.
Permanent link
 

Selected Publications

Maughan-Brown B, Kopeka M, Thirumurthy H, Buttenheim A, Lurie M, Rousseau E, Smith P, Bekker LG, Harrison A. : You could hear their breathing slow down": insights on a video-based psychosocial support intervention to increase HIV treatment uptake and improve psychosocial well-being among men living with HIV in South Africa. AIDS Care 38(2): 275-286, Feb 2026.

Bokolo S, Rabin M, Penuela-Wermers S, Chetty-Makkan CM, Egbe TI, Thirumurthy H, Maughan-Brown B, Buttenheim A. : Characterising concerns and misinformation shaping global HIV vaccine confidence and demand: a structured literature search and content analysis. BMJ Global Health 11(1): e020730, Jan 2026.

Richterman A, Bùi TN, Bair EF, Jerome G, Millien C, Suffrin JCD, Behrman JR, Thirumurthy H: The effects of government-led cash transfer programmes on behavioural and health determinants of mortality: a difference-in-differences study. The Lancet 406(10520): 2656-2666, Dec 2025.

Glanz K, Thirumurthy H, D'cruze NA.: Effectiveness of Financial Incentives for Health Behavior Change: A Narrative Review and Analysis. Annual Review of Public Health Dec 2025 Notes: Online ahead of print.

Sheira LA, Ayieko B, Gutin SA, Kwena ZA, Charlebois ED, Agot K, Moody J, Olugo P, Adede D, Lewis-Kulzer J, Gandhi M, Thirumurthy H, Bukusi EA, Camlin CS.: Gaps in Effective HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Screening and Uptake Among Fishermen in Kenya. AIDS and Behavior Nov 2025 Notes: Online ahead of print.

Richterman A, Desire S, Blaise W, Derose E, Moise A, Ward LP, Millien C, Thirumurthy H, Momplaisir F, Ivers LC: Money, Medicine, and Motherhood: Developing a Cash Transfer for Pregnant Women with HIV in Rural Haiti. AIDS and Behavior Page: 1-7, Nov 2025 Notes: Online ahead of print.

Njuguna C, Mistri P, Long L, Chetty-Makkan C, Maughan-Brown B, Buttenheim A, Schmucker L, Pascoe S, Thirumurthy H, O'Connor C, Mutasa B, Rees K: Behaviourally-Informed Two-Way Text Messaging to Improve Return to HIV Care in South Africa: Evidence from a Randomised Controlled Trial. AIDS and Behavior 29(11): 3661-3672, Nov 2025.

Apoorva Mandavilli: A New Way to Reduce Children’s Deaths: Cash. The New York Times Aug 2025 Notes: Simply giving money to poor families at certain times reduced deaths among young children by nearly half, a new study found (Harsha Thirumurthy quoted) https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/health/cash-transfer-kenya-poverty.html.

Chakrabarti A, Ellermeier N, Tripathi A, Thirumurthy H, Nugent R: Diet-focused behavioral interventions to reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review of existing evidence. Obesity Reviews 26(7): e13918, Jul 2025.

Richterman A, Maughan-Brown B, Thirumurthy H: The health dividend of cash transfer programmes. Lancet Public Health 10(7): e538-e539, Jul 2025.

back to top
Last updated: 02/09/2026
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania