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Melinda J. Dutton

With a practice that sits at the intersection of law, policy, strategy and business, Melinda focuses on supporting large-scale transformative change in complex environments. Bringing deep knowledge and experience in publicly financed health care—including Medicaid, CHIP and Affordable Care Act marketplaces; coverage expansion, delivery system transformation; and payment reform—Melinda guides federal and state regulators, local governments, providers, payers, life sciences companies and foundations in navigating the legal, regulatory and market challenges of today’s dynamic health care landscape.

An innovator in the health care industry, Melinda is one of the architects of Manatt Health’s groundbreaking, multidisciplinary professional services model, integrating legal, regulatory and consulting support to meet the evolving needs of a diverse array of health care stakeholders.

A frequent author and presenter on emerging trends and policies, she has been vocal on the importance of the social drivers of health (SDOH). Her cutting-edge work supporting the design and implementation of North Carolina’s “Healthy Opportunities Pilots” has been cited in “Managed Healthcare Executive.”

In addition, Melinda has served as a guest lecturer for health law and policy courses at colleges and universities, including New York University School of Law, Columbia Law School and New York Medical College. She was practitioner-in-residence at Saint Louis University School of Law.

Prior to joining Manatt, Melinda worked at the Children’s Defense Fund in New York. There, she helped develop and secure legislation expanding publicly funded health insurance programs for children. Her career in legal advocacy started in Brooklyn, where she helped establish a health law practice serving the borough’s low-income population.

Related Practices

Services

Government and Regulatory

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Manatt Health