Overview
In today’s complex and fast-changing healthcare regulatory environment, Emily Jane Cook helps healthcare organizations thrive. Innovative start-ups and established market leaders alike turn to Emily for broad-spectrum strategies to fuel new business initiatives and solve their most pressing compliance, transactional, reimbursement and litigation challenges. Emily is a practice area leader for the Healthcare Regulatory & Compliance practice.
In addition to Emily’s role as a national authority on the 340B drug pricing program, Emily helps clients navigate the full suite of federal and state regulations that are essential to healthcare operations. She partners with a wide range of organizations, including non-traditional service providers and new market entrants to identify, protect and expand revenue opportunities, including via private-equity-backed ventures. Her comprehensive counsel encompasses evolving issues such as No Surprises Act (NSA) implementation, development of new provider types, Medicare provider-based and co-location rules, and trends in qui tam litigation and government investigations. She works closely with colleagues in McDermott’s transactional, litigation and private equity practices to deliver fully realized solutions for her clients.
Emily’s deep insights into US healthcare regulation stem from her previous tenure at the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). For more than five years, she worked with providers and across government agencies to address regulatory barriers to healthcare delivery. She advised senior HHS leadership on Medicare and Medicaid regulation and reimbursement issues affecting rural communities and providers, and served as senior policy advisor to the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services.
Results
- Obtained favorable outcomes for clients in whistleblower actions, government investigations, regulatory appeals and self-disclosures to federal and state regulatory agencies, preserving government program participation and reducing or eliminating government program refunds and administrative penalties.
- Counseled large national health systems and academic medical centers through the development and implementation of innovative care models, including collaborative care models across facilities and between different types of clinical professionals, intended to maximize care quality and efficiency while maintaining regulatory compliance.
- Successfully appealed adverse findings in government audits of 340B programs for multiple hospital clients and negotiated corrective action plans, enabling the hospitals to continue leveraging program participation to their patients and communities.
- Led successful advocacy efforts to obtain changes to established or proposed federal regulatory requirements, reducing regulatory burdens and enhancing reimbursement opportunities.
Recognitions
- Chambers USA, Healthcare, 2021-2024
- Best Lawyers in America, Healthcare Law, 2019-2025
- Thomson Reuters, Stand-out Lawyer – independently rated lawyers, 2021-2024
- JD Supra, Readers’ Choice Awards, Top Author – Life Sciences, 2024
- Super Lawyers, Southern California Super Lawyer, Health Care, 2021-2023
- Lexology, Legal Influencer Q1, 2023
- Mondaq, Thought Leadership Award – Food, Drugs, Healthcare, Life Sciences, UK, 2023
- Daily Journal, Top Health Care Lawyer, 2022
- BTI M&A Client Service All-Stars, 2021
- Acritas Stars, Independently Rated Lawyers, 2020
- Super Lawyers, Southern California Rising Star, Health Care, 2012 to 2020
- Legal 500 US, 2017
Community
- American Health Lawyers Association, Planning Committee for Institute on Medicare and Medicaid Payment Issues
- California Lawyers Association, Health Law Committee, chair, 2019 to 2020, member, 2024
- McDermott Gender Diversity Committee, member and mentor
- Representing Hospitals and Health Systems Handbook, American Health Lawyers Association, contributing editor
Credentials
Education
University of Chicago Law School, JD, with honors, 2009
University of North Carolina, MSPH, Delta Omega honor, 2001
Duke University, BA, cum laude, with distinction, 1998
Admissions
California
