About Us

About Us

Mission

Through teaching, research and engagement with key decision makers, Northeastern University’s Center for Health Policy and Law promotes innovative solutions to public health challenges at home and around the globe. The center advances law and policy reforms to strengthen population health, reduce health disparities, nourish public health programs and enhance access to affordable, high-quality healthcare. Housed in the School of Law and firmly rooted in the university’s nine academic colleges and international network of campuses, the center brings together Northeastern faculty, students and experts across disciplines to share knowledge; conduct and disseminate research; and influence the formulation and implementation of health policy and law.

Teaching

Our educational goal is to inspire understanding of how health policy and law affect the population’s broader sense of well-being in settings ranging from individual clinical encounters to everyday situations shaped by national and international policies. We field a robust curriculum that includes degree, concentration and certificate programs in the School of Law and in partnership with other colleges across Northeastern University. We embrace and encourage an innovative, rigorous and experiential pedagogy that challenges conventional thinking, shapes analysis through an interdisciplinary and social justice lens, and prepares the next generation of leaders in health policy and law.

Scholarship

We develop and promote faculty and student scholarship that can be showcased in ways that provide for the greatest, most far-reaching impact. The center supports rigorous empirical, theoretical and conceptual research on topics both local and global, including infectious disease control, access to healthcare, healthcare quality regulation, reproductive health, health disparities, bioethics and the introduction and development of new medicines. We work with interdisciplinary partners across campus and with colleagues at other institutions both within the US and around the globe.

Student and Alumni/ae Engagement

We proactively engage with students, alumni/ae and external partners to ensure students and graduates have access to an evolving roster of potential employers, mentors and networking opportunities.

Events

The center coordinates a portfolio of events serving the interests and needs of Northeastern faculty, students and graduates, as well as the broader community. The center also partners with other entities within and beyond the university to sponsor and host conferences and other events that enhance dialogue and understanding relating to health policy and law. The center has designed itself to be agile and responsive to a rapidly changing legal and policy environment.

Partnerships

The center collaborates and pursues research and new initiatives with national and international partners, including academics, experts, lawyers, policy-makers, consumers, advocates and community organizations.