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Health Care

Visit Health Care Law BlogThe combination of an aging population, ongoing medical advancements, and health care reform brings even more complexity to the already intricate arena of health care law.  Foster Swift's team of experienced health law attorneys has been serving the industry long before its current rise in the public eye.

Complementing the experience of our Health Care Practice Group is the unique blend of regulatory, transactional and litigation attorneys, all whom are knowledgeable with the myriad of health care issues. We represent a wide range of entities including:

  • Hospitals
  • Physician groups
  • Home health and hospice providers
  • Long-term care and assisted living providers
  • Health care systems and networks
  • Managed care organizations
  • Physical therapy providers
  • Pharmacies and durable medical equipment companies
  • Integrated delivery systems  
  • Health information technology companies
  • E-health businesses
  • Suppliers and trade associations
  • Non-profit health care foundations and organizations

With Foster Swift, clients have the benefit of counsel who have a thorough understanding of the clinical and business realities of health care as well as the legal and regulatory requirements.

While acting as either general or special counsel, clients have retained us for assistance in the following areas:

Regulatory and Reimbursement

Clients seek our assistance on a variety of regulatory and reimbursement matters before local, state, and regulatory agencies, including:

  • Licensure and certification matters
  • Medicare and Medicaid appeals
  • Health care insurance provider audits
  • Certificate of Need matters
  • Third party reimbursement matters; including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan audits
  • Anti-Kickback and Stark II matters
  • False claims investigations and litigation
  • Tax exemption and TBOR II matters

Transactions

In this fast-paced health care environment, our attorneys assist clients with the formation, development and management of affiliations, acquisitions, mergers, joint ventures and newly integrated organizations.   Depending upon client goals and the complexity of the transaction, our role can be as simple as reviewing documents or as complex as heading up a multi-member transactional team.

Fraud and Abuse Matters

Members of the Foster Swift Health Care Group regularly assist clients in structuring transactions to minimize Anti-Kickback, Stark II, and False Claims. Key to our practice is assisting our clients with the development and implementation of effective compliance programs.

Managed Care, Insurance, and Employee Benefits

With multiple attorneys with decades of experience, health maintenance organizations, insurance companies, self-funded plans and third party administrators seek us out for representation before the Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation. In addition we regularly provide advice to networks of hospitals and physician providers on contractual matters, regulatory filings, appeals, credentialing and all aspects of litigation that may arise.

Credentialing

Credentialing issues are undoubtedly one of the most stressful matters for any healthcare provider. Our attorneys have extensive experience in successfully:

  • Representing clients in appeals regarding practitioner’s privileges with a facility or participation with a third party payor
  • Securing redaction of adverse action reports from state and federal health care professional data banks
  • Drafting medical staff bylaws, fair hearing procedures, and credentialing plans.

Information Technology

Minimizing client risk is always our goal as we assist vendors and purchasers address the legal considerations surrounding the acquisition and implementation of information technology systems in health care industry.  Our range of expertise includes:

  • Formation, financing and governance of business entities
  • Development, marketing and distribution arrangements
  • Drafting licensing agreements, systems implementation agreements, joint development agreements and outsourcing agreements
  • Advising on Internet and new technology issues  
  • Product liability
  • Information Technology clients also rely on our attorneys to negotiate and draft employment and non-compete agreements.

General Counsel

As general counsel to more than 100 health care industry-related clients, many of which have spanned decades, we become involved in matters unique to individual clients needs and operating goals of the organization, such as:

  • Risk management issues 
  • Employment, labor and benefits issues
  • Matters involving the privatization of health care facilities
  • Agreements and joint ventures with physicians
  • Medical records
  • Compliance issues 
  • Utilization review
  • Provider policies
  • Hospital finance and bond initiatives

HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules

The HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules are a concern of every health care provider, and our attorneys are committed to helping clients avert risk through the implementation of compliant programs as well as on-going training for all staff. In accomplishing this, we have extensive experience in helping health care providers transition their practices to electronic medical records and the Internet.  We also advise clients on the day-to-day issues arising from the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules. 

Litigation

Foster Swift attorneys are top tier litigators with an impressive track record of handling complex civil litigation on behalf of health care clients such as:

  • Successfully arguing before the United States Supreme Court which resulted in increased Medicare reimbursement for family physicians nationally and enhanced hearing rights for providers under Medicare Part B. 
  • Having on staff the first lawyer in the country to defend a client against the charges asserted by the federal government in a Stark II action. 
  • Having extensive experience representing providers in Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan audits and appeals.

Over the years, Foster Swift attorneys have been involved in many important cases before state and federal appellate courts.  This includes authoring numerous amicus briefs which have been referenced in many key state and federal appellate court opinions.

Well respected by their peers, more than half the members of this practice area are included in the Health care category of  Best Lawyers in America and have AV® Preeminent rating from Martindale Hubbell. Based on the breadth of their skill, Foster Swift Health Care attorneys have been asked for over two decades to provide the “Michigan Health Law Update” at the annual meeting of the Institute of Continuing Legal Education Health Law Institute.  

Foster Swift Health Care attorneys are committed to providing excellent legal counsel in an efficient and economical manner to help clients keep pace with the ongoing change. 

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  • Health Care Reform Basics for Providers, Michigan Medical Billers Association Northern Chapter, August 9, 2013
  • SEMINAR | Health Care Reform from an Accountant's Perspective
  • What Health Care Reform Means for Your Business, Michigan Restaurant Association Flint Chapter, June 17, 2013
  • What Health Care Reform Means for Your Business, Michigan Restaurant Association Kalamazoo Chapter, June 6, 2013
  • Compliance and the Role of Medical Billers, Sixth Annual Michigan Medical Billers Association Billing Expo, May 15, 2013
  • Perils and Pitfalls of Compliance Programs, Sixth Annual Michigan Medical Billers Association Billing Expo, May 15, 2013
  • What Health Care Reform Means for Your Business, Michigan Restaurant Association Grand Rapids Chapter, May 6, 2013