Health Care

health marketplace

For four decades, health care clients have trusted Ropes & Gray to craft innovative solutions and provide sophisticated and strategic advice on transactions, regulatory issues and government investigations. 

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“An excellent firm with good, talented people who have a strong work ethic when it comes to supporting their clients.” Health Care Client, Chambers USA
“They have been exceptional - they have provided a broad base of knowledge and expertise.” Health Care Client, Chambers USA
“This highly regarded firm is considered a significant force due to its broad regulatory expertise which includes advising clients on litigation, transactional and policy matters. Its deep FDA capabilities informed significant First Amendment litigation regarding off-label promotions, and its health care group has worked extensively on matters involving the impact of the Affordable Care Act.” Chambers USA

Overview

The health care industry in the 21st century faces tremendous change driven by growing demand, new technologies, shifting business models and intense government scrutiny. Clients benefit from Ropes & Gray’s deep experience in health care law, and our intimate knowledge of our clients’ industries, which position the firm to preempt and resolve legal issues across the full range of relevant practices.

More than 60 attorneys in Ropes & Gray offices across the United States represent virtually every sector of the global health care industry, including academic medical centers and community hospitals, health care investors and financial institutions, medical schools, pharmaceutical companies, pharmacy benefit managers, medical device companies, managed care organizations and insurance companies, health care provider organizations, physician practice groups, health care technology companies, biomedical companies, and long-term care and nursing home providers.

Our geographic scope covers major industry hubs throughout the U.S. and in international markets, with U.S. offices in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago and San Francisco, and offices, or structured networks, in pivotal global territories including London, India, Korea, China and Japan. Our experience in, and knowledge of, the health care community positions our attorneys to analyze complicated regulatory issues, anticipate trends and new initiatives, and develop creative, strategic and felicitous business solutions.

The success of the health care practice has been recognized by leading independent observers. In 2015, Chambers USA named Ropes & Gray the winner of the Award for Excellence, honoring the firm as firm of the year for health care. Eight partners were recognized for health care law in the 2013 edition of Best Lawyers in America, and nine of our partners were recognized for health care in the 2012 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, which also ranked our health care practice nationally and in California, Massachusetts, New York and Washington, D.C., as well as our pharmaceutical and medical products regulatory practice in Washington, D.C.

Services

Ropes & Gray’s health care group provides a comprehensive range of services, including: 

Strategic Counseling

Ropes & Gray has a long history of advising health care clients on matters of corporate governance, organizational structure and strategic direction. Our work in this area includes structuring governing body and governance relationships – of either a corporate or a contractual nature – that function as required.

We have extensive experience advising clients on: 

  • Governance and fiduciary standards 
  • Managed care contracting 
  • System network and design 
  • Public policy initiatives 
  • Government relations 
  • Strategic positioning 
  • Organizational structure 
  • Physician integration 
  • Accountable Care Organizations developments

Transactional & Capital Finance

Ropes & Gray has deep experience representing clients from virtually every sector of the global health care industry on a broad array of transactions. We regularly advise clients on:

  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Disaffiliations and separations 
  • Joint ventures and partnerships 
  • Affiliations, research collaborations and licensing agreements 
  • Revenue development 
  • Complex commercial agreements 
  • Tax-exempt bond financing

Regulatory

Compliance with state and federal regulation has proven an increasingly prominent concern among managers of health care institutions, both in the context of day-to-day operations and in connection with individual strategic transactions. At Ropes & Gray, we apply our experience in regulatory matters to help  clients successfully align their institutional practices with the directives outlined by regulatory bodies. In more than 15 states we have advised our clients on regulatory issues related to transactions and have leveraged our knowledge of the regulation of risk-based insurance contracts. 

Our vast experience on regulatory issues covers:

  • Medicare, Medicaid and third-party reimbursement 
  • Federal health care regulatory issues (e.g., FDA, Stark, HIPAA, IRB) 
  • Clinical research 
  • Fraud and abuse 
  • Health privacy and security 
  • Antitrust 
  • Licensure 
  • Public health oversight 
  • Intermediate sanctions 
  • Government enforcement

Clients

We represent participants in virtually every sector of the health care industry, including:

  • Academic medical centers 
  • Ambulatory care centers 
  • Ancillary services providers 
  • Biotechnology companies 
  • Cancer centers 
  • Catholic hospitals and health systems 
  • Children’s hospitals 
  • Clinical laboratories 
  • Contract research organizations 
  • Disease management companies 
  • Health care lenders, investors and underwriters 
  • Health maintenance organizations and other managed care entities 
  • Health plans and other health insurers 
  • Home health providers 
  • Hospitals and health systems 
  • Insurance companies 
  • Integrated delivery systems 
  • Managed and integrated care providers 
  • Investment banks 
  • Medical schools and teaching hospitals 
  • Medical device, equipment and information technology companies 
  • Nursing homes, skilled nursing facilities and assisted living facilities 
  • Pharmacy benefit managers 
  • Pharmaceutical companies 
  • Physician practice groups/management companies 
  • Post-acute and long-term providers 
  • Private equity firms 
  • Research institutions 
  • Specialty hospitals

Insights

Award for Excellence

Value-Based Health Care

Ropes & Gray's health care group has launched an online hub for articles, webinars, research materials and other valuable resources dedicated to value-based health care, all organized by industry segments and topics:

» Visit the value-based health care website

Shanghai Attorneys Author Publication on China’s New Medical Device Regulations

Life sciences regulatory & compliance partner Katherine Wang and associate Tina Wu (both of Shanghai), in collaboration with executives from McKinsey & Company, have authored a publication titled Building a “Healthy China” Through Innovation and Compliance. The authors ...

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Health Care Co-Chair Named to National Law Journal’s 2019 Health Care Trailblazers List

Health care partner and practice co-chair Deborah Gersh was named to the National Law Journal's 2019 “Health Care Trailblazers” list. The inaugural category list recognizes "agents of change" in the legal industry who have made an ...

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Value-Based Health Care: New Models For Success

The health care industry faces ongoing pressure to cut costs, increase efficiency, and deliver high-quality services to patients. To examine these changes, Ropes & Gray and Bloomberg Law hosted a half-day event that offered legal leaders the latest ...

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