Course Syllabus

Title of Course HEALTH POLICY, LAW AND ETHICS

Prefix and Number PUBHLTH 330

Semester and Year Fall 2025

Number of Credit Hours 3

Prerequisites none

Course Details

Day and Time: [T/Th]

Meeting Location: [tbd]

Instructor Contact Information

Instructor Name: [tbd]

Instructor Contact Information: [tbd]

Instructor Office Hours: [tbd]

TA Name: [tbd]

TA Contact Information: [tbd]

TA Office Hours: [tbd]

Course Description

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the legal and ethical issues impacting the administration and delivery of health care services. Health policy will examine the governmental role in health and in the provision of health care. Health policies, law, and ethics have a profound effect on quality of life. Accessibility, cost, quality of health care; safety of food, water, and environment; the right to make decisions about our health; these issues are vitally tied to health policies, law, and ethics.

Course Materials

Books: none

Other Materials: Supplementary reading materials will be posted on Canvas

Fees: n/a

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)
Course Learning Outcomes (students will be able to:)	Activities Supporting the Learning Outcomes	Assessment of the Learning Outcomes
Explain how federal, state, and local health policy is created	[class discussion; discussion boards; policy analysis project; policy presentation]	[discussion board participation, exams, assignment grades]
Explain the policy interests between the public health (public health) and individual rights	[class discussion, discussion boards, video reflection]	[discussion board participation, exams, assignment grades]
Explain the organization of the health care system, including principles and examples of health insurance and health care finance	[policy analysis project, policy presentation]	[exams, assignment grades]
Explain and understand the principles of cost, rationing, quality of care, and comparative effectiveness research in U.S. health policy	[class discussion; discussion boards, video reflection]	[discussion board participation, exams, assignment grades]
Comprehend the attributes and limitations that the law brings to biomedical developments	[class discussion; policy analysis project; policy presentation]	[discussion board participation, exams, assignment grades]
Apply evidence-based concepts in public health decision making and ethics	[policy analysis project; policy presentation]	[exams, assignment grades]

Course Schedule [Please note that a WSU semester is 15 weeks + Thanksgiving/Spring Break. The schedule below does not include the break.]
Dates	Lesson Topic	Assignment	Assessment
Week 1 [dates]	Course introduction Introduction to Health Policy	Read Syllabus Discussion #1	n/a
Week 2 [dates]	Understanding Role of and Conceptualizing Health Policy and Law & Policy and Policymaking Process	Chapters 1 & 2 Discussion #2	Discussion board participation
Week 3 [dates]	Law and the Legal System & Overview of the US Healthcare System	Chapter 3 & 4 Discussion Board #3	Discussion board participation
Week 4 [dates]	Public Health Institutions and Systems Social & The Art of Structuring and Writing a Health Policy Analysis	Chapter 5 & Chapter 14 Discussion #4	Discussion board participation
Week 5 [dates]	The Health Gap	Read: The Health Gap (Chapters 1-3) Video reflection #1 Policy Analysis Topic	Discussion board participation, reflection 1
Week 6 [dates]	Exam 1 (Weeks 1-5)	Exam 1	Exam 1
Week 7 [dates]	The Health Gap	Read: The Health Gap (Chapters 4-7) Video reflection #2	Reflection 2
Week 8 [dates]	The Health Gap	Read: The Health Gap (Chapters 8-11) Video reflection #3 Introduction & Problem statement for Policy Analysis	n/a
Week 9 [dates]	Individual Rights in Health Care and PH	Chapter6 Background Section of Policy Analysis	n/a
Week 10 [dates]	Determinants of Health and the Role of Law in Optimizing Health	Chapter 7 Landscape Section of the Policy Analysis	n/a
Week 11 [dates]	Understanding Health Insurance Health & Economics in a Health Policy Context	Chapters 8 & 9 Discussion #5	Discussion board participation
Week 12 [dates]	Health Reform in the US & Government Health Insurance Programs	Chapters 10 & 11 Options Section of Policy Analysis	n/a
Week 13 [dates]	Healthcare Quality Policy & American Indian Health Policy - Legal and Historical Basis for the Indian Health System and the ACA	Chapter 12 Recommendations & Opening Summary	n/a
Week 14 [dates]	American Indian Health Disparities And the Impact of COVID-19	Discussion #6	Discussion board participation
Week 15 [dates]	American Indian Health Policy - Tribal Management of Healthcare And Public Law 93-638	Discussion #7 Presentations Peer comments	Presentations

Expectations for Student Effort

For each hour of lecture equivalent, students should expect to have a minimum of two hours of work outside of class. Some weeks will have a higher workload due to the nature of assignments. Please consult the course schedule and ask your instructor if you have questions.

Grading

Assignment Breakdown
Type of Assignment (tests, papers, etc)	Points	Percent of Overall Grade
Exams	2 x50	25
Public Health Policy Presentation	70	17.5
Public Health Policy Analysis Project	100	25
Video reflections	3 x 20	15
Discussion Board Posts	7 x 10	17.5

Grading Schema
Grade	Percent
A	[>90]
B	[80 – 89]
C	[70 – 79]
D	[60 – 69]
F	[0 – 59]

Scores will be rounded to the nearest whole percent to assign a letter grade

Attendance and Make-Up Policy

Students should make all reasonable efforts to attend all class meetings. However, in the event a student is unable to attend a class, it is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor as soon as possible, explain the reason for the absence (and provide documentation, if appropriate), and make up class work missed within a reasonable amount of time, if allowed. Missing class meetings may result in reducing the overall grade in the class.

Academic Integrity Statement

You are responsible for reading WSU's Academic Integrity Policy, which is based on Washington State law. If you cheat in your work in this class you will:

-Receive an F in the class

-Be reported to the Center for Community Standards

-Have the right to appeal my decision

-Not be able to drop the course of withdraw from the course until the appeals process is finished

If you have any questions about what you can and cannot do in this course, ask me.

If you want to ask for a change in my decision about academic integrity, use the form at the Center for Community Standards website. You must submit this request within 21 calendar days of the decision.