Practices

Health Care

Hospitals and other health care providers, executives, and their patients, face enormous uncertainty in an ever-shifting industry.

We regularly advise our clients concerning new regulatory initiatives, ways to avoid and address allegations of billing or insurance fraud, and strategies to minimize and recover wrongful claim denials and underpayments.

Led by the former general counsel of HHS, the founder of the Florida Health Fraud Task Force, and a nationally recognized legal innovator who has won hundreds of millions of dollars for his clients, our team of trial attorneys and former regulators can go toe-to-toe with government regulators, insurance companies, and their legal counsel.

Key contacts

Jack E. Fernandez

Martin S. Himeles, Jr.

D. Brian Hufford

William B. Schultz

Meet the team

“Zealous advocates for their clients”Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business

Fraud and qui tam

We handle a broad spectrum of health care fraud cases—regulatory, civil, and criminal—including claims of billing fraud, false claims, kickbacks, off-label promotions, and an array of other matters. We have served as counsel in proceedings filed against health care providers by the DOJ, HHS, and state authorities.

Our team includes a founding member of the Health Fraud Task Force for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida and two current co-chairs of the Health Care Fraud Sub-Committee of the ABA White Collar Crime Committee.

Investigations

Described as “a haven for clients in trouble” by The American Lawyer, Zuckerman Spaeder has helped hundreds of clients navigate investigations, respond to government inquiries, and work to minimize or avoid enforcement actions and litigation. When going to trial is inevitable, our attorneys are courtroom-ready and bring decades of experience.

We understand the impact these investigations have on our clients’ day-to-day commercial and professional activities. For businesses, the damage to reputation and finances can be significant; for individuals, the toll on their lives and families can be extraordinary. Our representation of clients takes these factors into account in seeking resolutions that can achieve our clients’ goals and objectives.

Regulatory and compliance

Our health care attorneys help clients navigate the process of obtaining advisory opinions and other guidance from the HHS Office of the Inspector General and elsewhere, enabling them to pursue their work while confident about the regulatory process. We also work with the HHS OIG to obtain clarity and resolution for our clients who are under investigation.

Compliance programs not only protect health care providers against misconduct, but also help them demonstrate that they are satisfying statutory and administrative regulations.

We frequently advise health care transactions attorneys on relevant enforcement initiatives, and we have helped clients design, implement, and document programs to train and monitor employees. We also counsel health care providers on complying with corporate integrity agreements.