Joel Teitelbaum

J.D., LL.M.

Professor and Director of the Hirsh Health Law and Policy Program, Department of Health Policy & Management

Full-time Faculty

School: Milken Institute School of Public Health

Department: Health Policy and Management

Contact:

Email: Joel Teitelbaum

Office Phone: 202-994-4233

Fax: 202-994-3504

Milken Institute School of Public Health 950 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Office: 612 - Floor 6 Washington DC 20052

Joel Teitelbaum is Professor of Health Policy, Director of the Hirsh Health Law and Policy Program, and Co-Principal Investigator of the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership. He also carries a faculty appointment in the GW School of Law, and for 11 years he served as Vice Chair for Academic Affairs in the Department of Health Policy and Management. In addition to his training in health law from GW Law, he holds a certificate in Sustainable Management from Duke University, and he completed a postgraduate course of study in International Human Rights Law through the Human Rights Law Centre at England’s University of Nottingham School of Law.

Professor Teitelbaum has taught law, graduate, or undergraduate courses on health care law, health care civil rights, public health law, minority health policy, and long-term care law and policy, and he has received numerous teaching awards: In 2009, he became the first member of the School of Public Health faculty to receive the University-wide Bender Teaching Award; he is a member of the GW Academy of Distinguished Teachers; he is a recipient of the School’s Excellence in Teaching Award; he was an inaugural member of the School’s Academy of Master Teachers; he was inducted in 2007 into the ASPH/Pfizer Public Health Academy of Distinguished Teachers; and he has been named one of the “Stars” of undergraduate teaching at GW by an undergraduate leadership group. He has delivered more than 100 invited lectures/presentations at leading universities and national conferences.

Professor Teitelbaum is co-author of both Essentials of Health Policy and Law, Fifth Edition (2023) and Essentials of Health Justice: Law, Policy, and Structural Change, Second Edition (2023). He has authored or co-authored dozens of peer-reviewed articles and reports in addition to many book chapters, policy briefs, and blogs on law as a driver of health, health equity, civil rights issues in health care, health reform and its implementation, medical-legal partnership, and insurance law and policy, and he has directed many health law and policy research projects (including projects sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, Kaiser Permanente, the D.C. Department of Health, the Commonwealth Fund, the Bob Woodruff Foundation, the Public Welfare Foundation, the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation’s Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, the Center for Health Care Strategies, the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, and the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration). In 2000, Professor Teitelbaum was co-recipient of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Investigator Award in Health Policy Research, which he used to explore the creation of a new framework for applying Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to the modern health care system.

Professor Teitelbaum is heavily involved in GW service activities. Among other things, he has served as Chair of the Medical Center Faculty Senate's Executive Committee; Chair of the GW SPH Curriculum Committee; Chair of the Department of Health Policy's Curriculum Committee; Chair of the Department's Appointments, Promotion, and Tenure Committee; Co-Chair of the committee that created and implemented GW's undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree in public health; and Chair of a GW SPH task force to develop a student anti-mistreatment policy.

In 2016, during President Obama’s second term, Professor Teitelbaum became the first lawyer named to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary’s Advisory Committee on National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives (a.k.a. “Healthy People”), the national agenda aimed at improving the health of all Americans over a 10-year span. He serves as a member of the Board of Advisors of PREPARE, a national advanced care planning organization, and on multiple committees of the American Bar Association: as a liaison to the Task Force on Eviction, Housing Stability, and Equity; as an advisor to the Coordinating Committee on Veterans Benefits and Services; and as a member of the Advisory Board of the Public Health Legal Services Research Project in the Center for Human Rights. Previously, he served on the Board of Advisors for Health Leads D.C. (formerly Project HEALTH), part of a national student organization addressing socioeconomic, medical, and environmental causes of poor health in low-income children; on the Board of Directors of DePaul University College of Law’s Center for the Study of Race and Bioethics, which identified health care access barriers among minority populations and shaped public policy to help eliminate those barriers; and on the Council of Advisors for Physician-Parent Caregivers, Inc., which facilitates communication and collaboration between caregivers and parents of children with special health care needs.

Expertise

Health Law

Federal and State Legislation, Laws and Policies

Social Determinants of Health

Health Disparities

Health Policy

Education

Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1991

Juris Doctor, Marquette University, 1996

Master of Laws in Health Law, George Washington University School of Law, 1998

Certificate in Sustainable Management, Duke University, 2020

Postgraduate Course of Study in International Human Rights Law, University of Nottingham School of Law, 2021

Teaching

Civil Rights Issues in Health Care (graduate)

Health Services Law (graduate)

Health Law (undergraduate)

Minority Health and Health Policy (graduate)

Public Health Law (law)

Community Service

Current:

Liaison, American Bar Association Task Force on Eviction, Housing Stability, and Equity

Advisor, American Bar Association Coordinating Committee on Veterans Benefits and Services

Board Member, American Bar Association Health & Human Rights Initiative

Board of Advisors, PREPARE

Member, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary's Advisory Committee on National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives for 2030 (i.e., Healthy People 2030)

Board of Advisors, Health Leads D.C. (formerly Project HEALTH)

Board of Directors, DePaul University College of Law’s Center for the Study of Race and Bioethics

Council of Advisors, Physician-Parent Caregivers, Inc.

Consultant, U.S. Department of State Office of Citizen Exchanges

Volunteer, District of Columbia Bar Association

Volunteer, American Constitution Society for Law and Policy

Volunteer, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

Volunteer, Washington Council of Lawyers

Institutes and Centers

Hirsh Health Law and Policy Program

Research

Professor Teitelbaum's research interests include health justice/equity, health care civil rights, law as a driver of health, medical-legal partnership, and health disparities.

Publications

Selected Publications

Elizabeth Tobin-Tyler and Joel Teitelbaum, Essentials of Health Justice: Law, Policy, and Structural Change (2nd Ed.). Jones and Bartlett Learning, Burlington, MA. 2023.

Sara Wilensky and Joel Teitelbaum, Essentials of Health Law and Policy (5th Ed.). Jones and Bartlett Learning, Burlington, MA. 2023.

Joel Teitelbaum, Angela McGowan, Therese S. Richmond, Dushanka V. Kleinman, Nico Pronk, Emmeline Ochiai, Carter Blakey, and Karen H. Brewer, “Law and Policy as Tools in Healthy People 2030,” Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 27: 265-273 (November/December 2021)

Joel Teitelbaum and Laura Hoffman, Inequality in the Access to Health Care, in Robert Rycroft and Kimberley Kinsley, Eds. Inequality in America: Causes and Consequences, ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara, CA (2021)

Sara Wilensky and Joel Teitelbaum, Essentials of Health Law and Policy (4th Ed.). Jones and Bartlett Learning, Burlington, MA. 2020.

Angela McGowan, Katheryne Kramer, and Joel Teitelbaum, Healthy People: The Role of Law and Policy in the Nation’s Public Health Agenda, Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics, 47(2 suppl): 63–67 (2019)

Joel Teitelbaum, Joanna Theiss, and Colleen Healy Boufides, Striving for Health Equity through Medical, Public Health, and Legal Collaboration, Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics, Volume 47(2 suppl): 104–107 (2019)

Elizabeth Tobin-Tyler and Joel Teitelbaum, Essentials of Health Justice: A Primer. Jones and Bartlett Learning, Burlington, MA. 2019. (Reviewed by William M. Sage in Health Affairs at https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.2019.01002)

Elizabeth Tobin-Tyler and Joel Teitelbaum, Medical-Legal Partnership: A Powerful Tool for Public Health and Health Justice, Public Health Reports, 134(2): 201–205 (2019)

Sara Hooper, Joel Teitelbaum, Ami Parekh, and Anne Fabiny, “Legal Advocacy to Promote Equitable, High-Value Care for Older Adults in the Complex Care Population,” Health Affairs Blog, https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20190514.199890/full/ (2019)

Joanna Theiss, Janelle Schrag, and Joel Teitelbaum, “A System-Level Approach to Addressing Health-Harming Legal and Social Needs: A Case Study of the NYC Health + Hospitals and LegalHealth Medical-Legal Partnership,” National Center for Medical Legal Partnership and America’s Essential Hospitals (2019), available at https://medical-legalpartnership.org/mlp-resources/nyc-health-and-hospitals/

Joel Teitelbaum and Ellen Lawton, The Roots and Branches of the Medical-Legal Partnership Approach to Health: From Collegiality to Civil Rights to Health Equity, Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics, Volume XVII(2), Summer 2017.

Elizabeth Tobin-Tyler and Joel Teitelbaum, Training the 21^st Century Healthcare Team: Maximizing Interprofessional Education through Medical-Legal Partnership, Academic Medicine, Volume 91(6):761-765 (2016)

Joel Teitelbaum, Obligation and Opportunity: Medical-Legal Partnership in the Age of Health Reform, Journal of Legal Medicine, Volume 35(1): 7-28 (2014)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and James Scott, Raising the Bar on Achieving Racial Diversity in Higher Education: The United States Supreme Court’s Decision in Fisher v University of Texas, Academic Medicine, Volume 88(12): 1792-1794 (2013)

Joel Teitelbaum and Laura G. Hoffman, Health Reform and Correctional Health Care: How the Affordable Care Act Can Improve the Health of Ex-Offenders and Their Communities, Fordham Urban Law Journal, Volume XL(4): 1323-1356 (2013).

Joel Teitelbaum, Lara Cartwright-Smith, and Sara Rosenbaum, Translating Rights into Access: Language Access and the Affordable Care Act, American Journal of Law and Medicine, Volume 38(2&3): 348-373 (2012)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Katherine Hayes, Crossing the Rubicon: The Impact of the Affordable Care Act on the Content of Insurance Coverage for Persons with Disabilities Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics, and Public Policy, 25(2): 527-562 (2011)

Joel Teitelbaum and Erica Spector, District of Columbia v. Heller: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports, 124(5): 758-760 (September/October 2009)

Joel Teitelbaum and Sara Rosenbaum, Gonzales v. Oregon: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports, 122(1): 122-124 (January/February 2007)

Joel Teitelbaum, V. Nelligan Coogan, and Sara Rosenbaum, Town Of Castle Rock, Colorado v. Gonzales: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports 121(3): 337-339 (May/June 2006)

Sara Rosenbaum and Joel Teitelbaum, Implementing the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit Program: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports 120(4): 467-469 (July/August 2005)

Joel Teitelbaum, Health Care and Civil Rights: An Introduction, Ethnicity & Disease, Volume 15(2), Supplement 2: 27-30 (Spring 2005)

Joel Teitelbaum, Sara Rosenbaum, and Eric Goplerud, State Laws Permitting Intoxication Exclusions in Insurance Contracts: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports 119(6): 585-587 (November/December 2004)

Sara Rosenbaum and Joel Teitelbaum, Aetna Health, Inc. v. Davila: Implications for Public Health Policy, Public Health Reports 119(5): 510-512 (September/October 2004)

Joel Teitelbaum, Taylor Burke, and Sara Rosenbaum, Olmstead v. L.C. and the Americans with Disabilities Act: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports 119(3): 371-374 (May/June 2004)

Joel Teitelbaum, Sara Wilensky, and Brian Kamoie, An Overview of Recent Government Interventions in Patient Rights, Trauma, Volume 45(6): 37-52 (April 2004)

Sara Rosenbaum and Joel Teitelbaum, Civil Rights Enforcement in the Modern Healthcare System: Reinvigorating the Role of the Federal Government in the Aftermath of Alexander v Sandoval, Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics, Volume III, Issue 2: 215-252 (Summer 2003)

Brian Kamoie, Joel Teitelbaum, and Sara Rosenbaum, “Megan’s Laws” and the United States Constitution: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice, Public Health Reports 118(4): 379-381 (July/August 2003)

Joel Teitelbaum and Sara Rosenbaum, Medical Care as a Public Accommodation: Moving the Discussion to Race, American Journal of Law and Medicine, Volume 29: 381-394 (2003)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Brian Kamoie, Law and the Public’s Health, Public Health Reports 118(1): 72-73 (January/February 2003)

Richard K. Riegelman, Joel Teitelbaum, and Nancy Alfred Persily, Public Health Degrees--Not Just for Graduate Students, Public Health Reports 117(5): 485-488 (September-October 2002)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Alexandra Stewart, Olmstead v L.C.: Implications for Medicaid and Other Publicly Funded Health Services, Health Matrix: Journal of Law-Medicine, Volume 12, Number 1, pp. 93-138 (Winter 2002)

Sara Rosenbaum, Rick Mauery, Joel Teitelbaum, and Rita Vandivort-Warren, Evaluation of Agreements Between Managed Care Organizations and Providers of Community-Based Mental Illness and Addiction Disorder Treatments, The American Journal of Managed Care, Volume 8, Number 2 pp. 135-147 (February 2002)

Joel Teitelbaum, The Role of Evidence in Emergency Health Care Policy and Law: A Case Study for the Scientific Thinking and Integrative Reasoning Skills Project, for the Association of American Colleges and Universities (2014)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Katherine Hayes, The Essential Health Benefits Provisions of the Affordable Care Act: Implications for People with Disabilities, for the Commonwealth Fund (March 2011)

Joel Teitelbaum and Sara Rosenbaum, Drafting of Medical Necessity Regulations, Chapter 90 of Title 29 of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations, for the District of Columbia Department of Health Care Finance (2008 – 2010)

Jennifer Leonard, Joel Teitelbaum, Kristin Younger, and Sara Rosenbaum, Drafting of Request for Proposal for the District of Columbia Child and Adolescent Supplemental Security Income Program (2006 - 08)

Joel Teitelbaum, Drafting of Request for Proposal for the District of Columbia Healthy Families Program (responsible for the Marketing, Member Services, Utilization & Care Coordination Capabilities, Financial Functions, and Management Information Systems sections) (2006)

Joel Teitelbaum, J. Zoe Beckerman, Taylor Burke, and Sara Rosenbaum, An Analysis of Intoxication Exclusions in Insurance Contracts and Employee Health Benefit Plans: Implications for Coverage and Public Policy, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (July 2005)

Sara Rosenbaum and Joel Teitelbaum, Olmstead at Five: Assessing the Impact, prepared for the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured and the Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc. (June 2004)

Joel Teitelbaum, Racial and Disability Discrimination, in The Patient Rights/Provider Manuals, District of Columbia Bar Association, Health Law Section (2004)

Sara Rosenbaum, Henry Van Dyck, Amanda Bartoshesky, and Joel Teitelbaum, Analysis of State Laws Permitting Intoxication Exclusions in Insurance Contracts and their Judicial Enforcement, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (February 2004)

Joel Teitelbaum and Sara Rosenbaum, Health Care Benefits and Legal Enforcement of Individual Rights: Implications for Persons with Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (October 2003)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, Rick Mauery, and Alexandra Stewart, Reasonable Modification or Fundamental Alteration?: Recent Developments in ADA Caselaw and Implications for Behavioral Health Policy, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (February 2003)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Rick Mauery, An Analysis of the Medicaid IMD Exclusion, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (December 2002)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, Rick Mauery, Marcie Zakheim, and Michael Golde, An Evaluation of Agreements Between Managed Care Organizations and Community-Based Mental Illness and Addiction Disorder Treatment and Prevention Providers, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (May 2000)

Sara Rosenbaum, Joel Teitelbaum, and Robert Silverstein, The Americans With Disabilities Act: Implications for Managed Care for Persons with Mental Illness and Addiction Disorders, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (October 1999)

Sara Rosenbaum and Joel Teitelbaum, Cultural Competence in Medicaid Managed Care Purchasing: General and Behavioral Health Services for Persons With Mental and Addiction-Related Illnesses and Disorders, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (May 1999)

Joel Teitelbaum, Sara Rosenbaum, et al., Selected Key Issues in the Development and Drafting of Public Managed Behavioral Health Care Carve-Out Contracts, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (January 1999)