Health Law & Policy
Law and policy shape every dimension of the U.S. health care system—from payment and regulation to workforce mobility and corporate accountability.
Dive into our work on health law and policy — from academic research to policy briefs and real-world commentary.
Health Law & Policy
Law and policy shape every dimension of the U.S. health care system—from payment and regulation to workforce mobility and corporate accountability.
About the Health Law Lab
The Health Law & Policy Lab at CAHPR examines how legal and regulatory frameworks affect access, affordability, and innovation in care delivery and how evidence can drive meaningful policy change at the federal and state level.
Our research bridges empirical analysis and policy translation. We recognize the influence of proper timing and effective dissemination of academic research within the policymaking process and work toward engaging key stakeholders. Through collaboration with policymakers, regulators, and legal scholars, the lab informs strategies to strengthen competition, protect workers and patients, and promote a more equitable and accountable health care system.
The Big Questions
- How do laws, regulations, and court decisions shape who receives care, how care is delivered, and how it is financed?
- What policy options exist at the regulatory and statutory levels to improve how the U.S. health care system functions?
- What policy levers within existing statutes can improve accountability, access, and value in the health care system?
- What are the limits and opportunities of federal and state authority in regulating health systems and insurers?
- How can evidence inform statutory and regulatory reform to strengthen health outcomes and system performance?
- What lessons can policymakers draw from past legal interventions in health reform?
Featured Work
Recent Publications
- Noncompete Agreements for US Physicians
- Medicaid Lesser-of Rules and Disparities in Skilled Nursing Facility Quality
- Litigating the No Surprises Act: how legal challenges undermined cost containment and reshaped provider payments
- The Corporate Backdoor to Medicine: How MSOs Are Reshaping Physician Practices
- Changes in Maternal Care and Infant Health After Noneconomic Damage Cap Repeals
- Health Care Conglomerates: Policy and Legal Options for Addressing Vertical Integration
Related Policy Materials
- No Surprises Act: Current Challenges and Future Directions
- Updated Analysis of the Revised Proposed Combination Between WakeMed Health & Hospitals and Atrium Health
- State Legislative & Regulatory Developments in 2026 Related to Health Care Antitrust Policy
- Response to the Senate Finance Committee’s Request for Information on Commonsense Policy Options to Lower Drug Prices for Patients
- Public Comment to the Health Care Affordability and Mitigation Work Group, National Association of Insurance Commissioners
From Statehouses to Capitol Hill
Turning Evidence Into Policy
Experts
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Erin Fuse Brown JD, MPH
Health Law Lab Lead, Professor of Health Services, Policy & Practice -
Lindsey Murtagh JD, MPH
Distinguished Senior Fellow -
Hayden Rooke-Ley JD
Assistant Professor of Health Services Policy and Practice
Our funders:
Dive into our work on health law and policy — from academic research to policy briefs and real-world commentary.