About
This is an advanced health law course that explores the legal issues that arise between and among patients, health care providers and regulators with regard to the quality and safety of health care. Quality is one of the major themes in the study of health care law and policy, in particular as it is frequently in tension with Cost and Access considerations. Safety of health law operations, institutions, and procedures has received heightened scrutiny since the publication of "To Err is Human..." Private law models for addressing quality and safety, while still used extensively have become more politicized and controversial as they have been battered by waves of tort reform. This course focuses on both private and public law responses to quality and safety issues, examines the impact of common law liability models on changing provider behavior, federal and state regulatory agencies and their quality and safety research, and process and technology-driven reforms.