Health Care Law

Health care organizations and medical professionals face an increasingly complex legal, regulatory, and business environment. Smith Anderson’s team of experienced lawyers advises health care facilities, providers, practitioners, and industry organizations nationwide on the legal and strategic issues that shape the business and delivery of health care, from health care policy, legislative advocacy, and executive strategy, to mergers and acquisitions, data privacy and security, litigation, and the complex business requirements of organized medicine. We regularly serve as outside general counsel to health care providers, operators, and trade associations, providing practical counsel on governance, regulatory compliance, operations, transactions, and other matters critical to achieving our clients’ organizational and business objectives.

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Industry Leadership

For decades, Smith Anderson has been at the forefront of the industry’s evolution, helping launch innovative health care delivery models such as clinically integrated networks, joint ventures between health systems and practitioners, Community Care of North Carolina, and accountable care organizations (ACOs) across the country. In addition, we counsel a variety of health care organizations and physicians on value-based payment and population health strategies, including ACOs, bundled payment, and clinically integrated networks. Our health care practice also has particular strength representing long-term care providers, including skilled nursing, assisted living, and independent living organizations.

Our attorneys have handled a variety of high-profile health care litigation matters, ranging from hospital governance and financing to certificate of need, health care regulatory, reimbursement, professional malpractice, and government investigations. Smith Anderson has been involved in some of the most important issues facing the health care industry in the courts.

As a result of the strengths noted by our clients and peers, Chambers USA, one of the world's leading legal ranking agencies, has recognized our Health Care practice as a leader in North Carolina. Plus, Best Law Firms® has recognized our Health Care practice since 2011. Whether serving as outside general counsel, guiding transformational transactions or helping clients navigate complex regulatory and litigation matters, our goal is to provide practical solutions that allow health care organizations to remain focused on delivering exceptional care to the patients, residents, and communities they serve.

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Services

• Health care mergers and acquisitions, including practice buy-ins and buy-outs
• Medicare and Medicaid compliance
• Medicare Shared Savings Programs (MSSP) and other value-based reimbursement initiatives
• Electronic Health Record implementation and related services
• Professional association representation
• Certificate of Need (CON)
• HIPAA compliance and other federal and state confidentiality and privacy laws
• Managed care contracting and dispute resolution
• Medicare and Medicaid fraud, waste and abuse defense
• OIG/DOJ investigations
• False Claims Act
• Stark Law / Anti-Kickback Statute
• Resolution of regulatory issues and administrative litigation
• Representation before licensing boards
• Antitrust
• Practice and business entity formation
• Strategic general counsel services, including governance and Board matters
• Medical staff issues
• Provider organizations
• Exclusive contracting
• Employment issues, including covenants not to compete 

Podcast

Listen and follow Pulse on Carolina Health, a Smith Anderson podcast delving into current health care trends, regulations and policies shaping the landscape in North Carolina. In each episode, our host pairs up with industry executives and leaders from across the state to discuss where their finger is on the pulse of timely health care topics and to broadcast issues of importance that affect their business most. Tune in to stay informed about the latest developments in health care law, policy and industry trends and discover what’s driving change in North Carolina’s health care system.

Follow Pulse on Carolina Health on your favorite podcast app.

• Formation of accountable care organizations across the country
• Represented buyer in hospital acquisition involving complex public financing regulatory compliance
• Formation and ongoing general counsel representation of a nationally leading collaborative care organization with over 5000 health care providers and facilities
• Assisted and managed Health System HIPAA Compliance Programs
• Represented health care providers and facilities in complex managed care contracting and related disputes, including out-of-network legal compliance  
• Represented private equity acquisitions in health care industry
• Drafted and revised HIPAA policies and procedures
• Negotiated and drafted physician and joint venture contracts
• Litigation of health care provider audits across the country
• Negotiation of complex health care agreements and transactions
• Formation of Physician Organizations and Physician Hospital Organizations
• Advised on HIPAA OCR investigations and audits, and handled HIPAA incident and breach investigations
• Experience with corporate practice of medicine issues across the country
• Represented seller in sale of five-location behavioral health treatment facility
• Successful appeal of termination decisions by managed care organizations and Department of Health and Human Services
• Formation of management services organizations