Overview
Ryan Morris dedicates his practice to supporting corporate clients and healthcare companies in all stages of business. He utilizes his understanding of the intricacies of the healthcare industry to assist clients in achieving their goals. Ryan aims to efficiently provide pragmatic solutions to complex problems.
He guides companies through all phases of transactions including strategic partnerships, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, reorganizations, and business disputes, among others.
Ryan also focuses on provider/payor disputes with commercial and governmental payors in matters such as audits, investigations, and overpayment actions.
He mitigates clients’ compliance risks arising from statutory frameworks including privacy and security laws such as HIPAA and HITECH, and anti-fraud and abuse laws such as anti-kickback, self-referral, patient brokering, fee-splitting, and false claims laws. He aims to help clients maximize revenues utilizing cutting edge methodologies while also ensuring operations remain compliant.
Ryan has successfully assisted numerous companies and individuals with licensure, registration, and certification matters. He frequently guides clients through proceedings with regulatory bodies. His grasp of the extensive regulations applicable to facilities, providers, suppliers, information technology companies, ancillary companies, and others operating in the healthcare sector helps him to spot regulatory issues for clients before they arise.
Experience
- Closed practice purchase transactions for a mental health enterprise by coordinating all transaction stages including diligence, deliverables, healthcare regulatory, and change of control.
- Served as seller-side counsel for a transaction whereby a 70+ physician regional practice combined with another physician practice. Crafted compliant revenue and expense allocation methodologies and coordinated various other transaction matters throughout the transaction process.
- Represented a physician practice as regulatory counsel after a 10,000+ patient breach from a ransomware attack. Conducted regulatory reporting and responded to Office of Civil Rights requests. No monetary penalties were imposed.
- Served as seller-side healthcare counsel for the sale of a multi-location primary care practice with predominately risk-based payor arrangements.
- Implemented trading partner agreements and intellectual property protection documents for a healthcare clearinghouse.
- Coordinated a client’s purchase of multiple dentistry practices.
- Successfully negotiated the equity purchase of a large radiology practice.
- Finalized the purchase of an ophthalmology and optometry practice on behalf of another provider entity.
- Negotiated a joint venture between a clinical research company and a large single-specialty practice.
- Structured the purchase of a Georgia pain management clinic and obtained the necessary regulatory approvals.
- Advised multiple specialty practices on all aspects of implementing laboratory operations including revenue allocations, billing and reimbursement, management, marketing, and licensure.
- Successfully defended a provider entity in a False Claims Act investigation involving alleged upcoding, unbundling, and other allegedly misrepresented claims.
- Defended multiple laboratory companies against a health insurer’s claims for relief for fraud, tort, and ERISA claims based on alleged misrepresented claims.
- Negotiated the purchase of a laboratory that was in bankruptcy.
- Secured the dismissal of an overpayment demand by a health insurer against a laboratory client based on the insurer’s own policies, ERISA, and complex medical necessity and billing arguments.
- Negotiated a joint venture between a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) software company and a laboratory.
- Advised multiple companies regarding the implementation of new telemedicine operations and optimal compliance practices.
News & Insights
- “Shocking Testimony About Aetna: Lessons for Health Care Counsel,” The Daily Report, 2018
Involvement
Professional Associations & Memberships
- Florida Bar, Health Law Section
- Georgia Bar, Health Law Section
Practices
Education
- Emory University School of Law, Atlanta, GA, J.D., 2015
- University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA, B.S., summa cum laude, 2011
Admissions
- Florida Bar, 2019
- Georgia Bar, 2015
- Georgia State Courts, 2015
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, 2018
