Medicare and Medicaid Law and Policy

2 credits · Law School

This course examines selected topics in the design and operation of Medicare and Medicaid, the principal public health insurance programs in the United States covering more than 120 million Americans. Because these programs were dramatically affected by the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in March of 2010, we will discuss that law frequently as well. The course introduces students to legal and policy issues from the perspectives of program beneficiaries, health care providers and payers, drug and device manufacturers, and program administrators. Topics to be covered include the legal rights and obligations of all of these parties in the following areas: program benefits, eligibility, financing and payment, reimbursement, and coverage. Special focus will be paid to the historic role the Medicaid program played during the COVID-19 global pandemic in covering millions of additional insured or under-insured Americans. [2]