Amid mounting financial pressures and the rise of value-based reimbursement, savvy health care players are leveraging mergers, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships to achieve their objectives. With Baker Donelson's formidable size, experience, and track record, clients gain a decisive edge in maneuvering through the intricate landscape of health care transactions. Our dedicated team not only stays abreast of evolving health laws but strategically employs this knowledge to guide clients through the complexities of the industry. From inception to exit, few firms rival our depth of experience in shepherding health care entities through every phase of their journey.
Baker Donelson is a powerhouse in health care transactions, serving a diverse range of clients across the nation including for-profit, non-profit, religious, and government-sponsored health systems and hospitals, as well as other provider types such as independent physician practices, ambulatory surgical centers, and clinical laboratories. We also represent financial institutions, brokers, investment bankers, equity investors, mezzanine lenders, and management groups. We have served as counsel to many of the national for-profit U.S. hospital chains, as well as many of the leading public and non-profit health systems in this country. Clients with deep experience in federal and state health care regulations, we offer unparalleled insight into the intricate implications of structuring investments and acquisitions. We help clients ranging from physician group practices to larger health and hospital systems thrive amidst changes in health care delivery and financing. Whether it's advising private equity funds or representing health care companies seeking capital, our team excels in all phases of transactional activities. Clients value our deep understanding of their business goals and our commitment to creating value at every stage of the deal. We are experienced in advising on, and providing insight into fund formation, capital raises, private equity funds' planning and structuring strategies, negotiation of investments in portfolio companies, regulatory and compliance matters, mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, spin-offs, joint ventures, strategic alliances and partnerships, reorganizations, restructurings, and due diligence.
Our health care transactions lawyers and regulatory advisors work closely together to resolve issues and keep deals on track. Our deep bench of transactional experience allows us to understand the business needs of all types of health care organizations and design creative solutions to achieve these business goals. Our broad health care regulatory experience enables us to identify critical issues during the diligence process, helping our clients evaluate risk and implement common-sense solutions when problems arise. We possess in-depth knowledge of federal and state laws and regulations impacting health care providers, enabling us to be a true "one-stop shop" for our clients. Our comprehensive services include regulatory analysis, business counsel, and transactional experience.
We focus on advising entrepreneurial clients who seek to navigate the latest market trends and explore strategic opportunities for medical groups, helping them enhance their enterprise value and optimize physician compensation. For those dealing with financial distress, we oversee all aspects of lender representation in health care defaults, which includes documenting loan modification and restructuring, addressing regulatory and survey issues, addressing inter-creditor issues with working capital lenders, dealing with reimbursement problems, and resolving various title issues with real estate. We routinely litigate bankruptcy, receivership, foreclosure, and lender liability in actions involving health care facilities across the country.
We frequently counsel buyers of distressed health care entities, guiding them through various avenues like note purchases, 363 bankruptcy sales, confirmed Chapter 11 plans, and orchestrated foreclosure sales.
We have extensive experience advising clients on:
Transactions
- Stock transactions
- Acquisitions
- Recapitalizations
- Affiliations
- Mergers
- Joint ventures
- Restructuring transactions
- Workout transactions for financially distressed or bankrupt providers
- Private equity transactions
- Debt and equity financing arrangements
- Establishment and structure of multilocation, multispecialty group practices and independent practice associations
Regulatory
- Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, and False Claims Act
- Data governance and HIPAA compliance Fraud, waste, and abuse policies
- Fraud investigations and audits by the Department of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General, and other federal and state governmental authorities
- Internal reviews and investigations
- Managed care/payer arrangements
- Corporate practice of medicine, fee-splitting, and other state professional practice rules, regulations, and ethical standards
- EMTALA compliance
- Health care facility licensure
- Antitrust
- Reimbursement
- Legal, financial, religious, cultural, and political compliance
- Certificates of need
- Data use and sharing strategies and compliance
- Information privacy and security
- Tax issues
- Due diligence
- Risk mitigation strategies
- Compliance training, counseling, and auditing
- Provider enrollment
- Clinical integration transactions, including network development, gainsharing, accountable care organizations (ACOs), service agreements, and equipment leasing compliance
- Corporate integrity agreements
- Exclusive provider agreements
- Physician agreements
Management/Governance
- Corporate governance
- Management agreements
- Independent contractor professional service agreements
- Employment and shareholder agreements
- Leases
- Commercial contracts