AMERICAN UNIVERSITY | WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW
Health Law & Policy Brief
The Health Law & Policy Brief is an online publication run by law students at American University Washington College of Law. Founded in 2007, the Health Law & Policy Brief publishes articles on a wide array of cutting-edge topics in health law. Such topics include health care compliance, fraud and abuse enforcement, health insurance payment and reimbursement issues, intellectual property issues, international human rights issues, FDA initiatives and policies, and a host of other matters. Beginning with a staff of just five, the Health Law & Policy Brief now boasts over twenty members and nearly 1,500 readers.
Current Issue
Volume 19, Issue 1
Latest from the Blog
Expansion of PA Newborn Safe Haven Law Requires Urgent Care Centers to Reassess Mandatory Reporting Procedures
Pennsylvania recently amended its Safe Haven laws to allow parents to surrender their newborns at urgent care centers without criminal liability. Previously, under Pennsylvania law, parents could only surrender their infants at hospitals, emergency medical services providers, and police stations without liability. However, in a recent amendment, Pennsylvania’s legislators expanded this law to include urgent care […]
Preemption or Exception? The Pandemic Era Informed Consent Debate
In August 2024, the Vermont Supreme Court decided that a family could not sue a school district, superintendent, or school nurse after their child was accidentally given a COVID-19 vaccine without parental consent. The unauthorized vaccination occurred in 2021 in the Windham Southeast School District of Brattleboro, Vermont, during a vaccine clinic hosted by […]
The Social Cost of Wellness: New NIH Visitor Guidelines Threaten Immigrant Patients
The arrival of 2025 saw the inauguration of Donald Trump for his second term and his Administration’s takeover of the federal government. The confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health Secretary means that the Trump Administration is positioned to impose its policy choices on all aspects of the federal government under […]
The Regression of Drug Policy in Trump’s Punitive Approach to Substance Use
In an effort to handle what he has stated as a “rampant drug smuggling and overdose death” problem in the United States, Trump has confirmed that new 25 percent tariffs will go into effect on March 4th against Mexico and Canada, with an additional 10 percent tariff against China. Despite a nearly 24 […]
The Future of Medicaid: How Proposed Budget Cuts Could Reshape Healthcare for Millions
Medicaid, the largest health insurance program in the country, provides coverage to over 72 million low-income individuals, people with disabilities, and the elderly. It covers one in five Americans and funds almost half of all births in the United States. Medicaid is also administered by the states and jointly funded by the states and the federal government. […]
PBMs, Their Controversy, and Their Future
The debate of whether pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are necessary in the healthcare field has been ongoing for years and doesn’t seem to be slowing down. PBMs are essentially middlemen and act as negotiating entities in the prescription drug supply chain. PBMs have the opportunity to set the prices of drugs in […]
Public Health at Risk: A Look at the New Administration’s Actions Against Vaccines
On February 15, 2025, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was confirmed to be President Trump’s secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”). HHS, among other things, oversees disease prevention through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); oversees the safety of food, drugs, medical devices, and vaccines through the Food and […]
Protecting Medicaid: Lawsuits Aim to Block Federal Funding Freeze
On February 26, 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed a budget resolution proposing $880 billion in spending cuts from the agency that oversees the safety-net insurance funding, including Medicaid. This decision has sparked significant concern among healthcare advocates and policymakers, threatening to undermine a program that provides essential health services […]
Bird Flu: How Federal Cuts Have Left the Nation Vulnerable
Avian influenza (H5N1), or bird flu, is a highly contagious virus that primarily affects birds but has recently mutated more quickly and spread more aggressively enhancing its ability to infect a wider range of species. Bird flu has adapted to impact mammals, including cattle, felines, raccoons, and sea lions, signaling its potential to cause […]
A Brief Respite from a Barrage of Anti-Trans Executive Orders
On February 14, 2025, a second federal judge halted President Trump’s executive order banning federal support for gender-affirming care for transgender youth under 19. The “denial-of-care” executive order came after a barrage of other orders discriminating against trans and nonbinary Americans in areas like the military, sports, and federal prisons. President Trump’s denial-of-care executive […]