Recognized as a leader in the field by Chambers USA, Law 360, Modern Healthcare, Benchmark Litigation and others, Bass, Berry & Sims has a proven track record of representing healthcare providers across all sectors of the healthcare industry in high-stakes investigations and related litigation and in advising clients on the key legal issues they encounter in the complex healthcare industry.
The firm’s multi-disciplinary Healthcare Fraud & Abuse Task Force is made up of more than 50 attorneys who have a deep understanding of the heightened enforcement scrutiny and regulatory risk confronting healthcare providers. We are known for successfully litigating and resolving matters on behalf of clients across the United States involving the False Claims Act and in representing clients in investigations brought by government regulators, including the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and various state agencies.
According to Chambers USA, the Healthcare Fraud & Abuse Task Force is “highly responsive, results-oriented and anticipates the needs of clients.” Its members “have substantial experience and expertise and their advice is spot-on.” And, they are recognized as among the “top healthcare fraud and abuse lawyers in the country” with “an incredible ability to take highly complex issues and narrow the focus to the most advantageous position” for clients.
Our clients have included virtually all types of healthcare entities, including hospitals and health systems, physician practices, ambulatory surgery centers, post-acute and long-term care providers, Medicare Advantage companies, specialty pharmacy, pharmaceutical and device companies, and ancillary providers.
What Sets Us Apart
With its foundation in Nashville, the nation’s healthcare capital, and our presence in Washington, D.C., the nation’s capital, the Healthcare Fraud & Abuse Task Force is known for its:- Insight into the inner workings of the government. A number of our attorneys previously held leadership roles in the DOJ, HHS-OIG and other government agencies giving us valuable insight in advising clients concerning enforcement matters and counseling clients on fraud and abuse issues. This same experience provides us with important credibility in our dealings with regulators.
- Deep experience in False Claims Act matters. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing healthcare providers in fraud and abuse matters in virtually every state, and we have litigated and/or resolved False Claims Act allegations in jurisdictions throughout the country.
- Unmatched healthcare regulatory knowledge. As regulatory counsel to more than 200 healthcare companies, we have a deep understanding of the regulatory and reimbursement environment. This depth of experience enables us to develop innovative solutions to manage risk under the fraud and abuse laws and to employ that knowledge on our clients’ behalf in enforcement-related matters.
- Success in precedent-setting cases. We have obtained groundbreaking rulings on behalf of clients in key decisions issued by appellate and district courts throughout the country.
- Innovative thought leadership. Our Healthcare Fraud Resource Center includes a searchable database featuring more than 1,700 significant False Claims Act settlements from the last decade, current and past editions of our Healthcare Fraud & Abuse Annual Review, a video library of conferences and webinars, and access to our “Inside the False Claims Act” blog.
Areas of Focus
Government Enforcement
We routinely represent clients from across all sectors of the healthcare industry faced with fraud and abuse investigations initiated by the government and the related litigation stemming from those enforcement efforts and whistleblower activity. These actions often involve representing clients in civil enforcement matters under the False Claims Act or criminal investigations or enforcement actions under the federal healthcare laws; the threat of enormous potential monetary damages or penalties; and potential exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs.
Controlled Substances Act
We have significant experience in conducting internal investigations and responding to federal or state criminal and civil investigations involving drug diversions and related compliance under the Controlled Substances Act and the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act. We have assisted clients with timely disclosures to regulators for potential drug diversion incidents, and we routinely represent clients in dealing with agencies and regulators including DOJ, DEA, FDA, OIG, state departments of health, and boards of pharmacy and nursing, among others.
Fraud and Abuse Counseling
We serve as healthcare fraud and abuse counsel to many of the leading companies in the healthcare industry. We work with clients to structure innovative arrangements that satisfy business objectives while managing risk under the fraud and abuse laws. We regularly analyze existing business arrangements for risk and potential violations of the fraud and abuse laws in the context of ongoing compliance efforts and due diligence. We have extensive experience negotiating successful resolutions of past violations through the OIG and CMS self-disclosure protocols, as well as payor and contractor reporting mechanisms.
