Dr. Sameen Ansari is a Family Medicine physician dedicated to advancing equitable, evidence-based health policy to uplift underserved communities.
Her passion for health system transformation led her to pursue an MPH in Health Policy at Harvard, where she gained hands-on experience in policymaking as a Public Health Fellow for State Senator Jo Comerford. As a family medicine resident at Harbor UCLA, Dr. Ansari had the privilege of guiding the most vulnerable patients through the maze of county healthcare. She also advocated for her peers and patients as the Southern California Regional Vice President of the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR).
Currently, as a National Clinician Scholars Program (NCSP) fellow at UCSF, Dr. Ansari is exploring state-level policies aimed at reducing healthcare disparities and improving access to care. She is engaged in projects evaluating California’s ambitious commitment to increasing primary care funding to 15% of total healthcare expenditures—the highest benchmark in the U.S.—while maintaining overall cost control. Her work examines both the financial modeling of this investment and the multi-stakeholder processes that shaped it. She is mentored by Dr. Jim Kahn, a distinguished healthcare economist at UCSF, and Dr. Kevin Grumbach, a leader in primary care policy and advocacy.
Dr. Ansari chose UCSF for its strong alignment with her policy interests and commitment to fostering meaningful mentorship. Through her NCSP fellowship, she aims to bridge the gap between rigorous research and real-world policy impact—ensuring that evidence-based solutions translate into tangible improvements for the communities that need them most.
Research Interests: Assessing state-level policies that focusing on reducing healthcare disparities and improving access to care for systemically disadvantaged populations.