Stephen Warnke > Ropes & Gray LLP > New York, United States > Lawyer Profile

Ropes & Gray LLP Offices

Ropes & Gray LLP
1211 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS
NEW YORK, NY 10036
NEW YORK
United States
Visit website 1 212 596 9000 1 212 596 9090

Stephen Warnke

Stephen Warnke photo

Work Department

Stephen Warnke represents a wide range of health care clients on state and federal regulatory, enforcement and compliance matters. Most recently, he is helping clients navigate a myriad of legal and regulatory issues associated with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Stephen’s clients include not-for profit teaching hospitals and medical schools, managed care organizations, investor-owned health care and pharmaceutical companies, and community-based providers of health, mental health and social services.

Stephen advises clients on Medicare, Medicaid and other government funding programs; state and federal fraud and abuse authorities, including the Stark physician self-referral and anti-kickback statutes; the repayment and disclosure obligations that arise from overpayments and improper relationships with referral source physicians; the design and implementation of corporate compliance programs; and the increasingly aggressive use of the state and federal civil false claims statutes by prosecutors and the “qui tam” bar.

Career

A former policy advisor in New York City government, Stephen also counsels clients on New York’s unique regulatory, reimbursement and enforcement landscape and has extensive experience before the New York State Department of Health and other New York regulators. In 2009, at the request of Andrew Cuomo, then New York Attorney General, Stephen became the founding chair of FAIR Health, Inc., a New York charity that publishes the benchmark data used by health insurers to set “usual and customary rates” (or “UCRs”) for out-of-network physician reimbursement. FAIR Health issues independent UCR data for commercial, consumer and academic research purposes and is a major contributor to the health reform debate.

Lawyer Rankings

United States > Healthcare > Service providers

(Hall of Fame)

Stephen Warnke – Ropes & Gray LLP

The diverse offering at Ropes & Gray LLP is well known for its extensive capabilities in healthcare data privacy, and administrative litigation relating to reimbursement and billing. In the Chicago office, practice co-head Deborah Gersh is known for her specialism in value-based care initiatives and data privacy under HIPAA, while Jennifer Romig primarily handles transactional and regulatory matters for healthcare and digital health clients. Boston’s Timothy McCrystal co-leads the team, with his recent areas of focus including the regulatory aspects of telehealth and access to care, and David Peloquin is noted for his knowledge of fraud and abuse laws on both a state and federal level. Working out of the Washington DC office, Stephanie Webster regularly acts for hospitals and academic medical centers in transactions. Stephen Warnke advises a range of government-funded managed care organisations and non-profit health systems in New York, while Sarah Blumenthal focuses on university-hospital relationships and third-party payment issues. In Los Angeles, Torrey McClary is particularly adept at handling joint ventures and acquisitions within the healthcare sector, and Ranee Adipat was promoted to partner in November 2023, having notable experience in corporate healthcare mandates. Thomas Bulleit retired in late 2022.

United States > Government > State attorneys general

A seasoned team of litigators and enforcement attorneys form the backbone of Ropes & Gray LLP‘s state attorneys general offering, assisting clients with navigating the complexities of the regulatory and enforcement environment. In conjunction with corporate, litigation, and regulatory experts from across the firm’s antitrust, data privacy, cybersecurity, life sciences, and healthcare groups, the team regularly represents clients in single and multistate investigations, litigation, and enforcement actions. Leading the charge are Chicago-based former federal healthcare fraud prosecutor Laura Hoey, Boston’s healthcare and life sciences expert John Bueker, and financial services specialist Gregg Weiner in New York. In Boston, James Dowden fields extensive experience counseling clients in enforcement proceedings and bet-the-company investigations, Andrew O’Connor specializes in fraud and antitrust, and Amy Roy primarily services financial services firms, investment advisers and mutual funds. Chong Park, who focuses on antitrust, consumer protection, and data privacy, is based in Washington DC, while healthcare veteran Stephen Warnke, and business, class action, and antitrust litigator Jane Willis operate out of New York. Former Assistant US Attorney at the US Attorney’s office in Los Angeles Ryan Weinstein joined the group as counsel in June 2023 from Covington & Burling LLP, increasing its capacity in healthcare, tech, sports, and financial services.

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