Staff, faculty, students, and affiliates of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research will be featured in eight scientific presentations, panel discussions, and poster sessions on topics including: filling the gaps left when federal datasets disappear, mental health among older adults, and long-term services and supports.

We also invite you to drop by the UCLA CHPR booth (#1759) to: 

• Meet some of our researchers and staff.
• Get demos of our data dashboards and online query tools, including the California Health Interview Survey’s AskCHIS™ and AskCHIS™ Neighborhood Edition (NE), California Elder Index, and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) Data Policy Lab dashboards.
• Pick up CHPR swag.

UCLA CHPR staff, faculty, and students are presenting the following sessions at APHA 2026: 

Monday, November 2

APHA’s Partner Symposium 
If Not Federal Datasets, Then What?
12:30 p.m.–2:00 p.m. 
Speakers: Ninez A. Ponce, Anne Shapiro, George Hobor (moderator), Usama Bilal, and Lorna Thorpe

This panel session, hosted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, includes UCLA CHPR Director and CHIS Principal Investigator Ninez A. Ponce, PhD, MPP.

The discussion will show how leaders are working to advance the next generation of large-scale public health insight by combining state data and scaling it for community-level decision-making, filling gaps with AI, and incorporating real-world sources like electronic health records and insurance claims to make sure the communities often left out are the ones these systems are built to see.

Ambient Ozone Exposure and School Absenteeism Among California Youth
12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m. 
Presenter: Yoojin Cho
Co-authors: Yu Yu, Xinyu Zhang, Michael Kleeman, Michael Jerrett, and Ninez A. Ponce

Exploring the Role of Housing and Employment in Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Policy: Case Studies of Adults with Disabilities in California
12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m. 
Presenter: Angelica Sanchez-Gomez
Co-authors: Isabela Cruz-Vespa, Araceli Hernandez, Daisy Saucedo, Angelica Barrios, Lei Chen, and Kathryn Kietzman

The Relationship between Employment Status and Health among Adults with Long–Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Needs in California
12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m.
Presenter: Lei Chen
Co-author: Kathryn Kietzman

Re-envisioning Typologies for Asian Americans: A Qualitative Analysis of Public Comments on Federal Asian Race and Ethnicity Standards
2:30 p.m.–3:30 p.m. 
Presenter: Ninez A. Ponce
Co-authors: Riti Shimkhada, Tara Becker, Susan Babey, and AJ Scheitler

Relationship Between Daily Autonomy in Decision-Making and Mental Health Among Older Adults Receiving Care at Home
3:05 p.m.–3:10 p.m.
Presenter: Shreya Paul
Co-authors: Kathryn Kietzman, Lei Chen 
Featured in: Aging Across Borders, Challenges, Priorities and Opportunities session (2:30 p.m.–4:00 p.m.)

Tuesday, November 3

Association of NHPI-Specific Tobacco Cessation Service Utilization with Smoking Quit Outcomes Among Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHPI) Adults in California
12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m. 
Presenter: Shreya Paul
Co-authors: Sean Tan and Ninez A. Ponce

Rethinking Capacity in an Aging Nation: A Functional, Rights‑Protective Blueprint for Conservatorship Reform
12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m. 
Presenter: Sophia Kangavari

There are 12 presentations and posters that use California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) data:

Sunday, November 1

Widening Racial Disparities in Food Insecurity Among Low-Income California Adults, 2021–2024

Food Security Moderates the Association Between Dental Insurance and Dental Care Utilization Among Low-Income Adults in California

Food Insecurity Predicts Financial Barriers to Care Even Among Insured Low-Income Adults

Need for Targeted and Culturally Tailored Statewide Policy Interventions to Address Food Insecurity among Women in California

Dual Burden of Food Insecurity and Housing Instability: Associations with Forgone Care Among Low-Income California Adults

Monday, November 2

Does Paid Medical Leave Improve Routine Check-Ups More For Low-Income Workers?: Evidence From California Health Interview Survey

Disparities in the HIV Prevention Cascade Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adults with Non-English Language Preference

Impacts of Exclusionary Immigration Policy on Rural Latino Health Care Access

Tuesday, November 3

Unrecognized Mental Health Needs Among Asian Americans: The Role of Immigrant Generation and English Proficiency

Changes in Mental Health Needs and Service Utilization Among Asian Adolescents and Adults in California Before and After the COVID‑19 Pandemic

Climate-Related Mental Health Harm: Spatial Disparities By Age and Place Across California

Disproportionate Prescription Fill Delays of Adults with Limited English Proficiency in California

The APHA Annual Meeting and Expo is the largest gathering of public health professionals in the United States. Each year, the conference brings more than 11,000 members of the public health community together for a wide array of scientific programming, poster sessions, meetings, networking, and more. The 2026 meeting theme is “Together We Thrive: Health Across the Lifespan.”