The American Lawyer: Health Law Jobs on the Rise
"Law," a mosaic by Frederick Dielman (1847-1935)
Over the course of the current recession, Health Care jobs have been an almost singular bright spot amidst almost continuous reports of employment loss. As we posted back in January of this year in “Health Care Jobs Up & Expected to Stay that Way,” The Wall Street Journal then reported that
“Health care saw a net gain of 419,000 jobs in 2008 and its growth outlook continues to be strong through 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent report again shows Health Care jobs to be one of the few bright spots in an otherwise bleak employment picture (to see the current health care employment numbers, click here, look at the column furthest to the right, and then scroll down towards the bottom and stop when you no longer see continuous minus signs).
What might one expect to be the effect of this relatively sanguine state of affairs for Health Care employment on Health Law practitioners?
In the well written and informative words of Professor Jennifer Bard, J.D., M.P.H (I highly recommend the article, “I’m Interested in Health Law– Now Where Can I Get a Job?” to anyone who may be considering a career in Health Law),
Health care is a trillion-dollar industry[1]that has grown exponentially over the past 10 years with very little sign of slowing. The demand for legal services has tracked the growth of the industry,[2] and, as a result, attorneys calling themselves “health lawyers” have grown from a small core of specialists to a large and diverse group of individuals who are as likely to specialize in bond issuance and tax planning as in torts or food and drug law. Moreover, the increasing regulation of health care has created substantial need for lawyers specializing in compliance with a vast array of federal, state and local regulations. Where 15 years ago most health law was done by small, specialized law firms, today many of the nation’s biggest law firms have thriving health law practices.
Significantly, although officially published in the Winter of 2009 (14 New York State Bar Association Health Law Journal 73 (2009)), Professor Bard first published those words to SSRN in February of 2008–prior to the onset of the Obama Administration and the rising priority of Health Care Reform and regulatory enforcement. Because of these rising priorities, her words are no less true than when they were written, and have arguably gained an even greater currency since.
In an article this month in The American Lawyer, “Drug Supplement. New federal regs demand more health care lawyers,” Rachel Breitman points out the following:
Ever since President Barack Obama gave health care reform a prime spot on his agenda, hospital, pharmaceutical, medical device, and insurance interest groups have been digging in, with the expectation of a battle to come–the kind that requires lawyers.
Changes have already begun. New federal regulations like a genetic discrimination shield law and new digital privacy security standards have been enacted. The U.S. Department of Justice and Health and Human Services launched a healthcare task force in May. “There’s going to be more oversight about how companies spend government grant funds for research and clinical trials,” says Frederick Robinson, the head of Fullbright & Jaworski’s Washington, D.C., health law practice, which advises clients like Zimmer, Inc., and Walgreen Company. “Also, as health care providers apply for stimulus funds, there will be new compliance challenges to get the money.”
As a result, law firms have a new appetite for health care lawyers.
[1] See U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalHealthExpendData/02_NationalHealthAccountsHistorical.asp#TopOfPage (last visited Dec. 1, 2007). The United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimate that in 2005 the U.S. spent $2.0 trillion on health care. This equals $6,697 per person.
[2] aareahttp://law.case.edu/student_life/journals/health_matrix/141/rothstein.pdf. (last visited Dec. 1, 2007). (In reflecting on the growth of health law over the past 50 years, Professor Mark Rothstein writes that
in the last fifty years, law has become an integral (if not universally welcomed) part of medicine. Physician practices are now concerned with privacy notices, informed consent documents, and advanced directives. At most hospitals, expanded in-house legal departments have been joined by related departments of risk management, regulatory compliance, and health information privacy and security. 213.
