Chetan A. Patil is counsel in Ropes & Gray’s health care practice, where he brings a wealth of experience in federal regulatory and administrative litigation. Chetan focuses his practice on representing healthcare and pharmaceutical industry clients in challenges to agency actions under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).
Chetan’s practice is informed by his extensive experience at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Civil Division. As a senior trial counsel at the DOJ’s Federal Programs Branch, he served as lead counsel for the federal government in a variety of high-stakes administrative and regulatory challenges. He has argued major cases in federal courts around the United States and prepared dozens of briefs in regulatory challenges raising complex administrative and constitutional law questions.
Chetan’s tenure at the DOJ also included roles as counsel in the Office of the Assistant Attorney General and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division. In those roles, he led the Torts Branch, overseeing significant tort litigation and settlements, and provided strategic counsel to senior political officials on politically sensitive litigation, regulatory, and legislative matters on DOJ’s docket. Chetan’s experience managing high-profile cases and advising senior officials is particularly advantageous for clients navigating the intricate regulatory landscape of the healthcare industry.
A highly strategic thinker and experienced and effective advocate, Chetan excels at handling complex legal issues for clients. Prior to working at DOJ, he was in private practice and represented clients across industries in appellate and trial-level litigation.
Experience
- Represents hospitals in a challenge to the Department of Health and Human Services’ retroactive rule regarding Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital payments.
- Represents hospitals before the D.C. Circuit in a challenge to Medicare regulation defining hospitals’ “patient days” for purposes of the Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital payments.
- Represents medical device company Alcresta Therapeutics in APA challenges to the application of Medicare’s “gap-filling” reimbursement methodology.
- Represents pharmaceutical manufacturer before the D.C. Circuit in an APA challenge to Medicaid Drug Rebate Program regulations.
- Represents hospitals as intervenors in a challenge to New Hampshire’s methodology for allocating Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital payments.
- Litigated an APA challenge to regulatory guidance on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) related to the use of online web tracking technologies.*
- Represented the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in APA and constitutional challenges to a regulation governing warning labels for cigarette packaging and advertising.*
- Successfully represented the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in an APA challenge to a rule relating to Medicare’s prospective payment system for home health agencies.*
- Led district court litigation of Appointments Clause and separation of powers challenges to administrative adjudication schemes and designations of acting cabinet-level officials.*
- Assisted senior political officials in the supervision of DOJ’s civil enforcement efforts related to the opioid crisis, involving claims arising under the Controlled Substances Act and the False Claims Act.*
*Experience prior to joining Ropes & Gray