She was Senior Economist and Director of the RAND Center for Latin American Social Policy. She earned a Ph.D. in Economics at University College London, UK. Her research is on pension reform, retirement behavior, non-contributory pension programs, and the interrelation between socioeconomic status and health. Her work has received several international awards. She has more than 20 publications including articles at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, American Economic Review, and the Review of Economics and Statistics.