Online Graduate Certificate Programs in Health Law, Policy & Compliance
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“When choosing which program is right for you, look for the one that aims to cultivate a passion for lifelong learning with its teachers and students, and provides coursework that would benefit health professionals (e.g., clinicians, administrators, policy analysts) from learning about core concepts to emerging issues in health law and policy field.”
Tara Sklar, JD, MPH, Faculty Director of the Health Law & Policy Program at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law
The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association believes that over $300 billion may be lost every year to fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid claims. Subsequently, this and other claims of fraud and mismanagement have increased the number of laws, policies, and regulations in healthcare. Staying abreast of these laws takes educated and trained professionals who have a firm understanding of health law, policy, and compliance.
Many professionals who want health law literacy and don’t have the time or inclination for law school can opt to complete a graduate certificate in health law, policy, and compliance. These certificate programs can be completed in as little as three months for the shorter courses or over 18 months for the longer ones. Students who enroll in one of these certificate programs will gain a basic understanding of health law, ethics, compliance, policy, and regulation.
This legal knowledge can make graduates valuable members of any healthcare team. Many programs even prepare students to sit for a Compliance Certification Board (CCB) certification exam. Passing a CCB certification exam demonstrates competency in this field and can help with employment or advancement opportunities.
The most common admission requirement for these programs is a bachelor’s degree. Some certificate programs have more stringent admission requirements, including letters of recommendation and a statement of purpose. Often, international students are required to provide proof of English proficiency through an IELTS or TOEFL exam.
With the increased popularity of online learning, many of these certificate programs are offered online. This allows students to complete their studies without having to relocate. Many programs are offered asynchronously, allowing students to complete their studies independently without sacrificing family life or their current career path.
Online certificate programs in health law, policy, and compliance are taught at law and graduate schools across the US. Continue reading to learn about some of the top programs in the country.
Meet the Expert: Tara Sklar, JD, MPH
Professor Tara Sklar is the faculty director of the health law & policy Program and a distinguished public service scholar at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. She also serves as the associate director of Telehealth Law & Policy at the Arizona Telemedicine Program, College of Medicine-Tucson, and as a subject matter expert with the National Consortium of Telehealth Resource Centers.
Professor Sklar’s teaching and research bridge the gap between healthcare and law by aligning where the law can help mitigate health disparities and improve care for vulnerable populations. Her legal scholarship is published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, and Journal of Clinical and Translational Science, among others. Her forthcoming book, “Telehealth Law & Policy in a Nutshell,” is under contract with West Academic Publishing. She teaches courses on telehealth law & policy and aging & the law.
MHAOnline.com: What do you wish the public understood about health law, policy, and compliance certificate programs?
Sklar: It is a missed opportunity to have the health sciences and law and policy in separate education pathways. Many people in healthcare often need and want to understand the clinical work alongside the regulatory and compliance requirements. Our health law & policy program at the University of Arizona has the tagline, “Transforming legal education to meet the needs of the future health workforce.”
MHAOnline.com: What advice would you give to aspiring health law, policy, and compliance certificate students?
Sklar: Many graduate programs focus on teaching within their discipline and have a fairly uniform student body of similar demographics and experiences. This was my experience in graduate school, and I believe it could be vastly improved upon.
With that in mind, we created the health law & policy program to support health professionals across disciplines from business, law, medicine, and biomedical engineering, as examples, to learn foundational health law competencies from academics, practitioners, and each other. The curriculum is stronger with a student body that offers diverse perspectives about how they engage with health law and policy.
Also, by being an online program, we have the added benefit of attracting students from all over the country and who are in a range of career positions, from just starting out to mid-career and nearing retirement.
When choosing which program is right for you, look for the one that aims to cultivate a passion for lifelong learning with its teachers and students, and provides coursework that would benefit health professionals (e.g., clinicians, administrators, policy analysts) from learning about core concepts to emerging issues in health law and policy field.
Featured Online Graduate Certificates in Health Law, Policy & Compliance
The online graduate certificate in healthcare policy and regulation at the University of Cincinnati prepares students to navigate the complex and confusing world of healthcare regulation. Graduates of this program will have the skills to evaluate healthcare policies and procedures’ impact on individual patients and the larger population as a whole. World-class faculty, who are leaders in healthcare policy and regulation, teach courses in healthcare finance, health quality, global health systems, and health informatics.
This interdisciplinary program is a collaboration between the College of Allied Health Sciences and the Lindner College of Business. Students need to complete 12 semester-credits to complete this certificate. Most students complete their studies in 18 months. Since this program is online, students don’t need to relocate to complete their certificate. Most students even continue working while in this program.
Admission requirements include a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, a 3.0 undergraduate GPA, a letter of recommendation, a current resume, and a statement of intent. International applicants will need to provide proof of English proficiency with a TOEFL exam.
- Location: Cincinnati, OH
- Accreditation: Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
- Program length: As little as 18 months
Graduates of The George Washington University College of Professional Studies graduate certificate in healthcare corporate compliance are prepared to navigate the complicated healthcare regulation, compliance, and legal landscape. Focusing on regulators’ concerns, this program emphasizes educating students in key statutes, regulations, and policy compliance to help them become valuable members of any healthcare corporation. Professionals in healthcare regulation, policy, and enforcement will find this certificate particularly useful.
This program is offered in a hybrid format. There is an on-campus capstone residency at both the start and the end of the program, with six months of online learning in between. The capstones are intensive case study courses where students apply their learning to real-world examples. Online learning is completed in an asynchronous format, allowing students to study on their own schedule.
- Location: Washington, D.C.
- Accreditation: Compliance Certification Board (CCB)
- Program length: Nine months
Students can earn an online graduate certificate in health policy, law, and compliance at the University of New England. This program emphasizes developing an understanding of the regulatory framework, how it shapes healthcare in America, and how to advocate for advancement in care. Courses are developed by top-tier faculty in healthcare policy and administration. These courses not only take into consideration how to improve healthcare but also consider what employers need in their staff.
Admission requirements for this certificate include a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, a 2.75 undergraduate GPA, and enough computer skills to navigate an online course. Credits earned as part of this program can be used to also complete a healthcare administration master’s degree.
- Location: Portland, ME
- Accreditation: New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE)
- Program length: Six months
The graduate certificate in health and hospital law at Seton Hall Law School is designed for healthcare professionals who need a better understanding of ethical, legal, and regulatory issues in healthcare. This program is well-suited for nurses, hospital administrators, physicians, compliance officers, and patient advocates. Since this program is offered entirely online, students can complete their studies at their own pace. Students only need to complete three eight-week courses to earn this certificate.
As these courses are taught at a law school, students should anticipate rigorous classes with a strong emphasis on regulatory texts and other legal documents. Students will receive regular personalized feedback on their coursework. The only admission requirements are to hold a bachelor’s degree and provide a current resume. Credits earned in this program can be applied to a master’s of science in jurisprudence.
- Location: Newark, NJ
- Accreditation: American Bar Association (ABA)
- Program length: As little as six months
The Albany Law School offers several online graduate programs in health law, policy, and compliance, including a nine-credit certificate in health law and compliance. Specifically designed for healthcare professionals, this program provides a basic understanding of laws that impact healthcare and the regulations that govern them.
Courses students can choose to complete include HIPAA compliance, malpractice, medicare and Medicaid, mental health law, and others. This online program can be completed without having to relocate or give up working. Ambitious students can earn their certificate in as little as three months. Students only need to have a bachelor’s degree to be considered for admission.
- Location: Albany, NY
- Accreditation: Middle States Commission on Higher Education
- Program length: Three months
Students can learn the fundamentals of risk management, privacy, compliance, and other legal issues by earning an online healthcare compliance certificate at the University of Southern California’s Gould School of Law. Students can complete this 12-credit program in as little as three months. Mandatory courses students must complete include healthcare compliance and regulatory compliance. Students can tailor their certificate with electives in courses such as patient privacy, healthcare law, contract drafting, and more.
While prior experience in law is not required, applicants to this program must have already earned a bachelor’s degree. This certificate is accredited by the Compliance Certification Board (CCB), and graduates are eligible to sit for the certification exam.
- Location: Los Angeles, Ca
- Accreditation: American Bar Association (ABA)
- Program length: As little as three months
The Northeastern University School of Law online graduate certificate in health law is designed to provide basic health law literacy to healthcare professionals. Graduates will be able to interpret complex legal issues and work effectively with legal counsel when their expertise is required. This program was designed because of the increasing need for healthcare professionals who have legal expertise because of the ever-evolving regulatory landscape.
With an asynchronous, completely online format, students can tailor their education to their schedule. Should students want to pursue further education, credits completed in this program can be applied towards a master’s degree at Northeastern University, such as a master’s of legal studies.
- Location: Boston, MA
- Accreditation: American Bar Association (ABA)
- Program length: Six to nine months
The online certificate in health law for health professionals at the University of Arizona is an interdisciplinary collaboration between faculty across the campus. This program directly responds to the increased need for legally literate professionals in the healthcare field. Graduates will gain a solid understanding of legal and ethical nuances in the healthcare field. Healthcare professionals who routinely encounter legal issues in their day-to-day work will find this certificate particularly beneficial.
Students can choose any four three-credit courses from a curated list. Some options include healthcare ethics, legal and regulatory fundamentals for healthcare business, and professional responsibility and compliance for health professionals.
- Location: Tucson, AZ
- Accreditation: Higher Learning Commission (HLC)
- Program length: 12 months
To answer the growing need for compliance professionals in healthcare, the University of Pittsburgh School of Law developed an online healthcare compliance graduate certificate program. Even though this program is offered completely online, students are part of a cohort that takes classes together. This program starts each year in January and is finished in October. Since this program is accredited by the Compliance Certification Board, graduates can sit for the Health Care Compliance Association’s certifying exams.
Required courses include professional judgment and ethics, effective compliance program development and skills, legal aspects of healthcare compliance, and selected applications in compliance. Students choose three seminars for their final capstone course. These seminars cover more specialized issues such as privacy, risk assessment, and insurance compliance.
- Location: Pittsburg, PA
- Accreditation: American Bar Association (ABA), Compliance Certification Board (CCB)
- Program length: 10 months
The Mitchell Hamline School of Law has offered an online healthcare compliance certificate for working professionals since 2008. This 11-credit program can be completed in just 11 months and is accredited by the Compliance Certification Board (CCB). Faculty who teach in this program are experts in law, ethics, regulatory compliance, billing and coding, audits, health reform, and many other areas.
Mitchell Hamline was one of the first law schools in the country to establish online learning. The depth of experience in distance education has helped them produce a superior certificate program that never requires students to travel to campus. Courses are offered asynchronously so students can complete their studies when it is convenient for them.
- Location: Saint Paul, MN
- Accreditation: American Bar Association (ABA)
- Program length: 11 months
