Melissa E. Welch is a student of the 2024-2025 LL.M. in Global Health Law and Governance. She is originally from the United States.
Welch is interested in global health governance, particularly after witnessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on hospital operations. She also plans to study the international legal framework for biotechnology.
Before enrolling at Georgetown Law, Welch was an attorney and elected officer at NewYork-Presbyterian, a leading academic health system. She advised the Board of Trustees and senior executives on corporate governance issues and developed expertise in compliance, not-for-profit law, regulatory law, crisis management, and medical ethics.
While at Georgetown, she interned on Capitol Hill and studied abroad in France. After graduation, she worked on a congressional campaign in Maryland and later at a business consulting firm led by a former U.S. Defense Secretary and a bipartisan government relations firm. While at Fordham University School of Law, she externed at the Urban Policy Clinic and the General Counsel’s Office at NYU Langone Medical Center. Welch won three national contests for her scholarship, including the New York State Bar Association’s health law writing competition for her publication, “Ignorance Is Not Bliss: Why Every State Should Adopt the CDC’s Revised Recommendations for Routine HIV Screening.”
Welch earned a Bachelor of Science magna cum laude from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She holds a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law. She is admitted to the Massachusetts and New York state bars and holds dual Polish citizenship.