The Eighth Annual AUWCL National Health Law Writing Competition 

We are pleased to announce the Eighth Annual AUWCL National Health Law Writing Competition. This competition is designed to encourage law students to write scholarly papers on current topics of interest relevant to health law and/or food and drug law. Current 2L, 3L, and 4L (part-time) JD and LLM students enrolled in a U.S. law school at the time of paper submission are eligible to participate. PAPERS MUST MEET COMPETITION RULES AND REQUIREMENTS. Certificates of Participation will be awarded to all participants.

Prizes

First Place: $1,500
Second Place: $1,000
Third Place: $500


Many thanks to our American University Washington College of Law alumni Ebunola Aniyikaiye ('17), Vanessa Burrows ('06), Shawn Fultz (’15), Mary Beth Giblin ('87), Sonali Gunawardhana ('03), John Jacob (’93), Joel Michaels (’75), Corrine Propas Parver ('82), and Jeff Wurzburg ('12) for generously sponsoring the competition prizes.
 

The submission portal is now closed. Winners will be announced in early June.
 

Please direct all questions to health@wcl.american.edu.

Congratulations to Our 2021-2022 Winners

FIRST PLACE

Christina Fuleihan
Boston University School of Law

Shattering the Mirage: The FDA’s Early COVID-19 Pandemic Response Demonstrates an Urgent Need for Reform to Restore Agency Credibility

SECOND PLACE

Morgan Cronin
Georgia State University College of Law

How Deep is the Objective Falsity Circuit Split?

Third Place

Delaney Bounds
The University of Iowa College of Law

Fulfilling the Olmstead Decision's Right to Home-Based Care in 2022: Paying Spousal Caregivers

honorable Mention

Weston McClain
University of Oregon School of Law

Preventive Care: Improving Health of Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance Program Patients Through Access to Fresh Fruit and Vegetables

Meet Our Judges

AJ Custard
 

AJ Custard

AJ Custard is a Manager, Regulatory Policy at the American Academy of Dermatology Association He oversees and manages the organization's activities in regulatory policy development, with a focus on skin health, skin cancer prevention and detection, and access to medications. In this role he expertly evaluates the impact of proposed federal regulatory changes and developments on the practice of dermatology and advises on strategies to influence proposed and existing regulations. Mr. Custard is a 2018 graduate of American University Washington College of Law.

Stefanie Doyle
 

Stefanie Doyle

Stefanie Doyle is an Associate at Baker Donelson. Ms. Doyle has an in-depth understanding of the federal rulemaking process, which she uses to her clients' benefit by guiding them as they seek to understand, comply with, and influence regulations. Her background in government relations, as a federal judicial law clerk, and as a law clerk with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services equips her to evaluate clients' regulatory and litigation needs. Prior to joining Baker Donelson, Ms. Doyle served as a health policy analyst for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists where she specialized in seeking to influence the statutes and regulations governing the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid program.  Prior to beginning her legal career, Ms. Doyle served as director of government relations for the District of Columbia Hospital Association and earned a master's degree in public health. She graduated from American University Washington College of Law in 2014. 

Jacob Harper
 

Jacob Harper

Jacob Harper is a Partner at Morgan Lewis in Washington, DC. Mr. Harper advises stakeholders across the healthcare industry, including hospitals, health systems, large physician group practices, practice management companies, hospices, chain pharmacies, manufacturers, and private equity clients, on an array of healthcare regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters. His practice focuses on compliance, fraud and abuse, and reimbursement matters, self-disclosures to and negotiations with OIG and CMS, internal investigations, provider mergers and acquisitions, and appeals before the PRRB, OMHA, and the Medicare Appeals Council. Before joining Morgan Lewis, Mr. Harper served as a law clerk at OIG and as a senior litigation paralegal at a national healthcare law firm, where he focused on fraud, abuse, and reimbursement matters. He is also a Certified Medical Reimbursement Specialist through the American Medical Billing Association. He graduated with his JD from American University Washington College of Law in 2013.

Garrett Mannchen
 

Garrett Mannchen

Garrett Mannchen is an attorney at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the Office of the General Counsel. In that role, Mr. Mannchen represents the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in federal district court litigation.  His portfolio includes challenges to the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, reimbursement for prescription drugs under Medicare Part B and Part D, decisions of the Provider Reimbursement Review Board, and Medicaid section 1115 demonstration projects.  Before joining HHS, Mr. Mannchen clerked for Judge Roger Wollman on the U.S. Court of Appeals or the Eighth Circuit. Mr. Mannchen is a 2015 summa cum laude graduate of American University Washington College of Law.

Alexis Rose
 

Alexis Rose

Alexis Rose is a data privacy and compliance attorney at Octillo. She works with clients in a variety of industries, including health care and life science clients, to build their data privacy and security programs. She provides counsel to clients subject to HIPAA, state privacy laws, and the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).  Ms. Rose’s prior experience includes working at Beckage, PLLC and as a compliance consultant for health care providers. While in that role, she advised clients on Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), and Office of Inspector General (OIG) regulations and requirements.  She worked with clients who were under Corporate Integrity Agreements or subject to CMS and OIG audits. While in law school, she was a policy intern for HHS OCR and the DC Department of Health. Ms. Rose attended Rutgers University for undergrad, has a Master in Public Policy degree from American University, and graduated with her law degree from American University Washington College of Law in 2018. She is a member of the District of Columbia bar and has a Certification in Healthcare Compliance from the Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA).

Cybil G. Roehrenbeck
 

Chris Smith

Chris Smith is Senior Counsel in the Health Care & Life Sciences and Litigation & Business Disputes practices, in the Washington, DC, office of Epstein Becker Green. His practice focuses on pharmacy law, drug distribution, and reimbursement issues. Before joining Epstein Becker Green, Mr. Smith worked as a Director of Federal Public Policy at a nonprofit trade association that advocates for pro-patient and pro-pharmacy public policy and as a Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at a national trade association representing the pharmacist owners, managers, and employees of independent community pharmacies nationwide. He also has a lobbying certificate from the Association of Government Relations Professionals.  He holds an LL.M. from American University Washington College of Law's Program on Law and Government, a JD from Vanderbilt Law School, and a BA from the University of Richmond.

Alexandra Spratt
 

Alexandra Spratt

Alexandra (Alex) Spratt is Director, Commercial Sector Prices at Arnold Ventures. Her work includes the identification of robust philanthropic opportunities, policy research and analysis, and stakeholder engagement and communications efforts aimed at advancing lower prices across the health care system. Prior to joining Arnold Ventures, Ms. Spratt was a senior policy analyst at CapView Strategies, a boutique health policy consulting firm in Washington, D.C., where she primarily focused on Medicare and Medicaid payment and delivery reform and alternative payment models, health reform, and drug pricing. During law school, she interned on Capitol Hill, in the Maryland Senate, and at several policy and advocacy organizations focused on health care and women’s issues. Ms. Spratt graduated from American University Washington College of Law in 2015 and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Florida.

Jessica Winslow
 

Jessica Winslow

Jessica Winslow is an Associate in the Employers and Health Services practice groups at Groom Law Group.  She advises both health insurers and large plan sponsors on a variety of health law matters, including issues arising under ERISA, the Affordable Care Act, the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, COBRA, and HIPAA.  In her work at Groom Law Group, Jessica helps employers with health plan design and compliance.  She also assists employer plan sponsors and insurers with government investigations. While in law school, she served as a member of the Administrative Law Review.  She is currently licensed to practice in the District of Columbia and Colorado. Ms. Winslow received her law degree, magna cum laude, from American University Washington College of Law in 2018, holds a B.S. in Psychology from Utah State University, and worked as a social worker prior to entering law school.