Healthcare law is one of the most complex legal fields in the United States, touching hospitals, insurers, pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology, public health agencies, privacy rules, medical ethics, fraud and abuse laws, and patient rights. For lawyers who already hold a JD or a foreign law degree, an LLM in healthcare law can provide focused graduate training for work in law firms, compliance departments, government agencies, health systems, universities, and life sciences companies.
The need for legal professionals who understand healthcare regulation is supported by broader labor market data. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects lawyer employment to grow 4 percent from 2024 to 2034, with about 31,500 lawyer openings expected each year, while compliance officer employment is projected to grow 3 percent over the same period, with about 33,300 openings per year. The BLS also notes that total employment growth from 2024 to 2034 is expected to be driven mainly by the healthcare and social assistance sector, making healthcare-related legal training especially relevant for attorneys interested in regulated industries.
Top LLM Programs in Healthcare Law
| Rank | School | State | Online? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgetown University Law Center | Washington, DC | |
| 2 | Saint Louis University School of Law | Missouri | |
| 3 | Loyola University Chicago School of Law | Illinois | Yes |
| 4 | University of Houston Law Center | Texas | |
| 5 | Seton Hall University School of Law | New Jersey | Yes |
| 6 | University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law | Maryland | |
| 7 | University of Washington School of Law | Washington | |
| 8 | Georgia State University College of Law | Georgia | |
| 9 | Albany Law School | New York | Yes |
| 10 | University of Oklahoma College of Law | Oklahoma | Yes |
| 11 | Wake Forest University School of Law | North Carolina |
1. Georgetown University Law Center
Georgetown University Law Center offers one of the strongest graduate health law options in the country through its LLM in National and Global Health Law. The program is especially valuable for attorneys who want to work at the intersection of domestic health regulation, global health policy, public health, food and drug law, and healthcare governance.
Georgetown’s health law offerings include the LLM in National and Global Health Law, a joint LLM in Global Health Law and Governance, a Certificate in Food and Drug Law, and a Certificate in U.S. Health Law. Its location in Washington, DC, also gives students access to federal agencies, policy organizations, international institutions, and healthcare advocacy groups. For lawyers interested in public health law, regulatory policy, or global health governance, Georgetown is one of the clearest national leaders.
2. Saint Louis University School of Law
Saint Louis University School of Law has one of the longest-standing and most recognized health law programs in the United States. Its LLM in Health Law is built around the school’s nationally known Center for Health Law Studies, which has been a major force in health law education for decades.
SLU describes its LLM in Health Law as an advanced degree for lawyers seeking either an in-depth introduction to health law practice or additional exposure to new developments in the field. The school also notes that students have access to health law faculty, practitioners, employers, and a network of more than 1,150 health law alumni. This makes SLU a strong choice for attorneys who want a traditional, deeply established health law academic environment.
3. Loyola University Chicago School of Law
Loyola University Chicago offers a fully online LLM in Health Law, making it one of the most accessible options for practicing attorneys who need flexibility. The program is 24 credit hours and is designed around legal, regulatory, political, ethical, and economic issues in healthcare delivery and provider regulation.
Loyola is a particularly strong fit for lawyers who want to continue working while earning the degree. The school’s online non-JD and post-JD law programs emphasize professional legal education for attorneys seeking specialized expertise, and its health law curriculum is shaped by practitioner faculty with direct experience in the healthcare industry.
4. University of Houston Law Center
The University of Houston Law Center offers a Health Law LLM connected to its Health Law & Policy Institute. The school states that the institute is recognized among the top health law programs in the United States and that the LLM emphasizes interdisciplinary study across health law and policy.
Houston is a strong option for students interested in the business, regulatory, and policy dimensions of healthcare. The program benefits from the city’s large medical and healthcare economy, including proximity to major hospitals, research institutions, and healthcare employers. Attorneys who want to work with healthcare providers, health systems, insurers, or life sciences organizations may find Houston’s regional advantages especially useful.
5. Seton Hall University School of Law
Seton Hall University School of Law offers an LLM in Health Law that can be completed in person, online, or through a hybrid format. The program is designed for attorneys who want to explore health law and policy broadly or focus more narrowly on representing healthcare providers, payors, regulators, patients, and pharmaceutical companies.
Seton Hall is a strong choice for students who want flexibility without giving up access to a dedicated health law curriculum. Its online option makes it practical for working attorneys, while its location in New Jersey places students near major healthcare, pharmaceutical, and life sciences employers in the New York-New Jersey region.
6. University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law
The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law offers an LLM program that allows students to build expertise in areas including health law. Maryland’s Law & Health Care Program emphasizes the complexity of healthcare law, including access to care, medical decision-making, public policy, and regulation.
Maryland is especially attractive for students who want interdisciplinary exposure. The law school highlights its location on a campus with research-based schools in nursing, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and social work, giving health law students a broader view of healthcare systems and policy. The school’s LLM program is open to U.S.-educated lawyers with a JD from an ABA-accredited law school and foreign-trained lawyers seeking advanced U.S. legal training.
7. University of Washington School of Law
The University of Washington School of Law offers a Health Law LLM with an interdisciplinary curriculum in U.S. health law and policy. The program covers areas such as telemedicine, FDA law, competition in healthcare, medical malpractice, bioethics, healthcare employment law, and Medicare and Medicaid fraud.
This program is a good fit for lawyers who want to study healthcare law in a setting connected to medicine, science, technology, and public policy. The school also benefits from its Seattle location, which gives students proximity to major healthcare institutions, technology companies, and research organizations.
8. Georgia State University College of Law
Georgia State University College of Law offers an LLM with opportunities to concentrate in health law. The school’s LLM admissions materials describe concentration options in rapidly growing fields, including Health Law and Legal Analytics.
Georgia State’s health law strength comes through its Center for Law, Health & Society, which focuses on healthcare business, public health, bioethics, health equity, health technology, and global health. This makes the school a good option for attorneys who want a practical urban law school environment with strong connections to healthcare regulation, public health, and policy.
9. Albany Law School
Albany Law School offers an online LLM in Health Law and Healthcare Compliance. The program is designed for attorneys who want to understand the laws and regulations that shape the healthcare industry, with a focus on practical skills for lawyers entering or advancing within the healthcare law sector.
Albany’s program is especially relevant for attorneys interested in compliance roles. Healthcare compliance has become a major career path for JD and LLM graduates because hospitals, insurers, pharmaceutical companies, and healthcare organizations must navigate federal and state regulations, privacy rules, billing requirements, and fraud and abuse laws.
10. University of Oklahoma College of Law
The University of Oklahoma College of Law offers an online LLM in Healthcare Law. The program focuses on major federal and state statutes, regulations, government advisory opinions, judicial opinions, and health law and policy initiatives.
OU’s curriculum includes topics such as healthcare institutions, health information management, fraud and abuse, transactions, contracts and billing, liability, HIPAA, privacy, and compliance. This makes it a practical option for attorneys who want an online healthcare law program with a strong regulatory and compliance focus.
What to Look for in an LLM in Healthcare Law
A strong healthcare law LLM should offer more than a general legal curriculum with a few healthcare electives. Students should look for programs with dedicated coursework in healthcare regulation, compliance, bioethics, public health law, privacy, fraud and abuse, health insurance, FDA law, and healthcare transactions.
Prospective students should also consider whether the program is designed primarily for practicing U.S. attorneys, foreign-trained lawyers, compliance professionals, or lawyers seeking academic or policy careers. The American Bar Association notes that its review of non-JD programs determines whether a proposed degree program interferes with the law school’s ability to comply with JD program standards, and that acquiescence is not the same as ABA approval of the non-JD degree itself. This distinction is important when comparing LLM programs, because students should review each school’s accreditation status, admissions requirements, bar eligibility rules, and program outcomes directly.
LLM vs MLS in Healthcare Law
For readers who do not have a JD, an LLM is usually not the right degree path. Paralegals, healthcare administrators, compliance staff, nurses, medical office managers, and other healthcare professionals who want to understand healthcare law without becoming attorneys may be better served by a Master of Legal Studies, or MLS, with a concentration in health law, healthcare compliance, or healthcare regulation. An MLS is designed for non-lawyers who need legal knowledge for their current field, while an LLM is typically a post-JD or foreign-lawyer degree for people who already have formal legal training. For healthcare workers, an MLS can provide useful grounding in HIPAA, patient privacy, healthcare compliance, risk management, employment issues, insurance regulation, medical ethics, and fraud and abuse rules without requiring the time, cost, or career commitment of law school. For paralegals, the MLS can also be a way to deepen subject-matter expertise and qualify for more specialized roles in healthcare law offices, hospital legal departments, compliance teams, or health policy organizations.