To learn more about the Clinical Curriculum and Registration, please visit our Clinical Registration Center.
You can also find more information on How to Register for Clinics and How Clinical Credits Work.

For more information about this clinic, please visit the Clinic Website, Clinic Q&A and OCP Blog Highlights.

Enrollment in this clinic will fulfill the HLS JD pro bono requirement.

Required Class Component: Students in the fall clinic must enroll in either Public Health Law and Policy (2 fall classroom credits) OR Health Care Rights in the Twenty-First Century (2 fall classroom credits). Students who enroll in the fall clinic will be enrolled in one of the required courses by the Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs.

Additional Co-/Pre-Requisites: None.

By Permission: No.

Add/Drop Deadline: August 23, 2024.

LLM Students: LLM students may enroll in this clinic through Helios.

Placement Site: HLS.

Students enrolled in the Health Law and Policy Clinic will work on cutting-edge legislative, regulatory and litigation projects at the state and national levels aimed at increasing access to quality, comprehensive health care for low-income individuals and families. Student projects involve: informing current debate on health reform efforts; providing law and policy analysis to national and state coalitions advocating to protect Medicaid, Medicare and discretionary health and public health programs: investigating best practices for initiatives to address health disparities and reduce barriers to health care for our most vulnerable populations; and litigating to address unfair and discriminatory public and private health insurance practices.

National level work involves advising government actors and leading chronic illness and disability partnerships to promote health and public health reform initiatives. State level work allows students the opportunity to travel to facilitate trainings and meetings and to support advocacy and litigation strategy development on a broad range of current health and public health concerns. (See the clinic website at www.chlpi.org for a more in-depth description of current clinic projects.)

Over the course of a semester, students gain a wealth of hands-on experience in current and emerging health law and policy issues, and develop written products such as fact sheets, in-depth reports, comment letters, testimony, presentations, draft legislation, regulatory guidance and litigation-oriented document production. Students have the opportunity to develop a range of problem-solving, policy analysis, research and writing, oral communication, advocacy and leadership skills.

Students who would like to participate in the clinic must enroll through clinical registration. Clinical placements are available for 3, 4, or 5 clinical credits. Students who enroll in the clinic will also be enrolled in the required seminar (Public Health Law and Policy or Health Care Rights in the Twenty-First Century, 2 fall classroom credits) by the Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs. Their enrollment in this seminar is dependent on their clinical enrollment (should they drop the clinic, they will also be dropped from the seminar).

Successful completion of appropriate written work in this offering satisfies the professional writing requirement for matriculants to the J.D. program from 2023 onward.