The Law of American Health Care, co-authored by Kevin Outterson, Published
New health care casebook, available from Wolters Kluwer, crafts an innovative approach to the study of health law.
N. Neal Pike Scholar in Health and Disability Law and Professor of Law Kevin Outterson has taken the next step in his years-long project to transform the teaching of health care law in American law schools by co-authoring a new casebook, The Law of American Health Care with Nicole Huberfeld of the University of Kentucky College of Law and Elizabeth Weeks of the University of Georgia School of Law.
The Law of American Health Care was conceived and structured as a departure from many traditional casebooks. The book eschews lengthy case notes in favor of greater engagement with primary sources. The authors pose questions and hypotheticals to help students better understand the cases. For a more comprehensive view of the field, they incorporate statutes, regulations, policy, and other non-case-based aspects of health law.
The casebook, available for the fall from Wolters Kluwer, aims to serve the needs of a rising generation of health care lawyers in a new legal landscape redefined by the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
The new book also benefits from Outterson’s work with the American Health Lawyers Association to create new curriculum guidelines for health law programs throughout the United States. He began in 2010 by surveying hiring partners and practice leaders in the health law arena to see if BU Law’s curriculum met their needs. After presenting his findings to the AHLA, he spoke with the organization’s leaders about expanding the study.
The final guidelines were published on July 1, 2014, with the input of hundreds of health law scholars and practitioners.
“The great thing about this process is that it allowed professors and practicing attorneys to work together to identify key priorities in health law teaching,” Outterson said in 2014.
One of the aims of The Law of American Health Care is to create a casebook that meets these guidelines.
“The project began with the goal of better preparing students for the workforce, but we also recognize that health law is a remarkably dynamic field,” Outterson said. “Students need to understand context and theory in addition to the law on the books today so they can adapt to the fast-changing landscape.”
As co-director of BU Law’s health law program (ranked #2 this year by US News and World Report), Outterson is well-positioned as a leader in the world of health law. He is the editor-in chief-of the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, published by John Wiley & Sons, and faculty co-advisor for BU Law’s own periodical, the American Journal of Law & Medicine.
He has been published in numerous journals related to law and medicine. One of his amicus briefs before the US Supreme Court was cited by Justice Stephen Breyer. He has testified before Congress and, recently, before President Obama’s Advisory Council on combating antibiotic-resistant bacteria. He blogs at the Incidental Economist.
Reported by Trevor Persaud (STH’18).