Health Care Law

The American Bar Association Health Law Section is dedicated to increasing interest in the field of health law. Its 8,885 members represent all areas of the health law industry and are committed to educating the legal profession in this rapidly changing area of practice.

The Affordable Care Act, passed by Congress and signed into law by the President in March 2010, gives you better health security by putting in place comprehensive health insurance reforms that hold insurance companies accountable, lower health care costs, guarantee more choice, and enhance the quality of care for all Americans.

In 1986, Congress enacted the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) to ensure public access to emergency services regardless of ability to pay. Section 1867 of the Social Security Act imposes specific obligations on Medicare-participating hospitals that offer emergency services to provide a medical screening examination (MSE) when a request is made for examination or treatment for an emergency medical condition (EMC), including active labor, regardless of an individual's ability to pay.

The Office for Civil Rights enforces the HIPAA Privacy Rule, which protects the privacy of individually identifiable health information; the HIPAA Security Rule, which sets national standards for the security of electronic protected health information; and the confidentiality provisions of the Patient Safety Rule, which protect identifiable information being used to analyze patient safety events and improve patient safety.

OHRP has published a variety of policy and regulatory guidance materials to assist the research community in conducting ethical research that is in compliance with the HHS regulations. These include guidance documents and frequently asked questions (FAQs) addressing various topics, findings in the form of OHRP letters addressing regulatory issues, and other media including decision tree graphics and educational videos.

The regulation implementing the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (PSQIA) was published on November 21, 2008, and became effective on January 19, 2009.

To provide for comprehensive health insurance coverage for all United States residents, improved health care delivery, and for other purposes.

URAC, an independent, nonprofit organization, is well-known as a leader in promoting health care quality through its accreditation, education and measurement programs. URAC offers a wide range of quality benchmarking programs and services that keep pace with the rapid changes in the health care system, and provide a symbol of excellence for organizations to validate their commitment to quality and accountability.

TAANA members practice in private law practice, in academia, as litigators and defense attorneys, as legal counsel for healthcare entities, and in health care compliance among other settings.

The American College of Legal Medicine (ACLM) was incorporated in 1960, with organizational roots dating back to 1955. It is the most prominent professional society in the United States concerned with addressing issues that arise at the interface of law and medicine. Fellows of the American College of Legal Medicine, which make up over 50% of its membership, have been trained and schooled in medicine and/or law and the majority hold both the MD and JD degrees. College members also include physicians (M.D., D.O.), attorneys (J.D., L.L.B), dentists, Registered Nurses, podiatrists, scientists, and other health professionals.

AHIMA (American Health Information Management Association) is a health information management (HIM) professional association over 61,000 members strong. Since its founding in 1928, AHIMA has remained committed to quality healthcare through quality information.

The American Health Lawyers Association is the nation's largest, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) educational organization devoted to legal issues in the healthcare field with more than 10,000 members.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the United States government’s principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. HHS represents almost a quarter of all federal outlays, and it administers more grant dollars than all other federal agencies combined. HHS’ Medicare program is the nation’s largest health insurer, handling more than 1 billion claims per year. Medicare and Medicaid together provide health care insurance for one in four Americans.

HCCA exists to champion ethical practice and compliance standards and to provide the necessary resources for ethics and compliance professionals and others who share these principles. The vision of HCCA is to be the pre-eminent compliance and ethics association promoting lasting success and integrity of organizations worldwide.

A non-profit, member-led trade association, the Healthcare Billing & Management Association (HBMA) represents more than 600 third-party medical billing firms. Founded in 1993, HBMA fosters personal development, advocates on the behalf of the medical billing profession and promotes cooperation through a wide range of business resources, educational events, networking opportunities, certification programs and enforcement of the Medical Biller's Code of Ethics.

The National Committee for Quality Assurance is a private, 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. Since its founding in 1990, NCQA has been a central figure in driving improvement throughout the health care system, helping to elevate the issue of health care quality to the top of the national agenda.

Founded in 1985 by several private health insurers and federal and state government officials, the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association is the leading national organization focused exclusively on the fight against health care fraud. We are a private-public partnership — our members comprise more than 100 private health insurers and those public-sector law enforcement and regulatory agencies having jurisdiction over health care fraud committed against both private payers and public programs.

Founded in 1970, the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) is a public interest law firm working to advance access to quality health care and protect the legal rights of low-income and underserved people. NHeLP serves legal services programs, community-based organizations, the private bar, providers and individuals who work to preserve a health care safety net for the millions of uninsured or underinsured low-income people.

The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) provides leadership in the protection of the rights, welfare, and wellbeing of subjects involved in research conducted or supported by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The Office of Human Services Policy (HSP)/HHS’ Chief Economist focuses on welfare, poverty, service delivery issues, data for research, policies affecting children, youth, and families, and economic matters affecting the Department. HSP is in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the Department of Health and Human Services.

Health Affairs is the leading journal of health policy thought and research. The peer-reviewed journal was founded in 1981 under the aegis of Project HOPE, a nonprofit international health education organization. Health Affairs explores health policy issues of current concern in both domestic and international spheres.

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a nonprofit news organization committed to in-depth coverage of health care policy and politics. KHN’s mission is to provide high-quality coverage of health policy issues and developments at the federal and state levels. In addition, KHN covers trends in the delivery of health care and in the marketplace.

Modern Healthcare is the industry's leading source of healthcare business and policy news, research and information. We report on important healthcare events and trends, as they happen, through our weekly print magazine, websites, e-newsletters, mobile products and events. Our readers use that information to make informed business decisions and lead their organizations to success. It's for this reason that Modern Healthcare magazine is ranked No. 1 in readership among healthcare executives and deemed a "must-read" by the who's who in healthcare.

Reuters Health provides daily breaking news coverage of the global pharmaceutical, medical and consumer health sectors. Timely and authoritative, Reuters Health is a must-have resource for those managing doctor and patient facing websites, healthcare-focused publications, pharmaceutical industry corporate intranets and health sector information services.

Articles written by attorneys and experts worldwide discussing legal aspects related to Health Care and Social including: defective drugs, failure to diagnose, informed consent, medical law, medical malpractice, medication errors, pharmaceutical law, social security, social services law, surgical errors.