Overview
Robert Kantrowitz is a corporate healthcare partner in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, focusing on healthcare regulatory, privacy/security, enforcement, transactional and restructuring matters. He regularly represents healthcare and veterinary clients in structuring and negotiating M&A, data and technology sharing/licensing, management services and other contractual arrangements, corporate organization and restructuring, compliance matters and investigations, data breach/incident response and risk management legal issues. Robert assists clients with a broad range of healthcare and veterinary regulatory matters, including laws related to fraud and abuse, licensure, the corporate practice of medicine and telemedicine.
Robert holds a Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US) credential given by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). Robert regularly counsels clients on privacy, data security, breach notification and interoperability laws and regulations, including HIPAA, Part 2, the ONC 21st Century Cures Act Final Rule, the FTC Health Breach Notification Rule, and state privacy and breach notification laws.
Robert is routinely called upon as special regulatory and healthcare privacy counsel in connection with major acquisitions of healthcare and veterinary service platforms undertaken by private equity and strategic acquirers. These transactions involve health information technology developers and service providers, revenue cycle management platforms and other digital health organizations, device and pharmaceutical/biotechnology manufacturers, laboratories, clinical research organizations and physician, dental, intermediate care, veterinary, medspa and other clinical platforms.
Additionally, Robert actively participates in pro bono activities serving as legal counsel to and an ex officio board member for not-for-profit organizations.
Experience
Representative Matters
Since joining Kirkland, Robert has been involved in the following matters:
- Altaris in its $540 million acquisition of Sharecare (NASDAQ: SHCR), a provider of a digital healthcare platform.
- RLDatix, a portfolio company of TA Associates, Nordic Capital and Five Arrows and global provider of connected healthcare operations software and services, on its acquisition of SocialClimb LLC, a healthcare technology company supplying patient satisfaction, reputation management and revenue growth solutions.
- Francisco Partners-backed QGenda, a provider of healthcare workforce management software solutions, in its sale to Hearst Health.
- Ascension, one of the largest private healthcare systems in the United States, in multiple strategic hospital transactions.
- Genesis Care Pty Ltd (a leading cancer care provider) and its affiliates in their Chapter 11 cases.
- Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. in its $1.4 billion sale of Nextech to TPG.
- A health benefits administrator in its internal investigation stemming from a data security incident.
- A medical claims manager in its internal and regulator investigation stemming from a data security breach involving health records.
- A physician-owned hospital in developing and implementing its HIPAA privacy and security policies and procedures.
- An international life sciences company in its internal investigation regarding its data privacy and security practices.
- Oak Street Health (NYSE: OSH) in its $10.6 billion sale to CVS Health (NYSE: CVS).
- Pipeline Health System, LLC and its affiliates during their Chapter 11 cases.
- Thoma Bravo in its $10.4 billion acquisition of Anaplan, Inc.
- Francisco Partners in its acquisition of bswift from CVS Health (NYSE: CVS).
- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in its $2.5 billion sale of Sirius Computer Solutions, Inc. to DW Corporation (Nasdaq: CDW).
- Francisco Partners in its acquisition of Office Ally.
- Bain Capital Private Equity in its acquisition of PartsSource from Great Hill.
- Thoma Bravo in its $6.9 billion acquisition of SailPoint Technologies Holdings, Inc.
- Owens & Minor in its $1.6 billion acquisition of Apria, Inc.
- Vera Whole Health, a portfolio company of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, in its combination with Castlight Health.
- Nordic Capital-led consortium in its $7.3 billion acquisition of Inovalon.
- KKR & Co. L.P. in its acquisition of a majority interest in Therapy Brands, a leading practice management and electronic health record software platform.
- Nordic Capital in its acquisition of United Veterinary Care.
- Bain Capital in its management of HST Pathways.
- MRO Corp. in its acquisition of Cobius Healthcare Solutions, a provider of reimbursement and compliance risk management tools for hospitals, healthcare systems and physicians.
- EW Healthcare Partners-backed Cognate BioServices in its sale to Charles River Laboratories.
- The Susan G. Komen Foundation in its implementation of a patient navigator program and related privacy matters.
- Olympus Partners in its acquisitions of ONsite Mammography.
- BC Partners in its acquisition of Women’s Care Enterprises.
- Sphere in its acquisition of Patient Engagement and Revenue Cycle Management Platform, Health iPASS
- Brookfield in its acquisition of Everise
- Clayton Dubilier & Rice LLC in its majority stake investment in Vera Whole Health Inc.
- Starr Investment Holdings, LLC in its sale of ConvenientMD
- MRO, Corp. in its acquisition of Clinical Data Interoperability Company, FIGmd
- Bain Capital in the investment in PartsSource
- Windjammer on the closing of a Continuation Fund transaction of Vital Records, LLC
Prior to joining Kirkland, Robert was involved in the following matters:
- Smith & Nephew in its $660 million acquisition of Osiris Therapeutics, Inc.
- Venus Concept Ltd. in connection with its merger with Restoration Robotics, Inc.
- A major New York HMO in connection with its sale to one of the largest providers of government-sponsored health insurance in the U.S.
Prior Experience
More
Thought Leadership
Speaking Engagements
Speaker, “AI Governance in Health Care,” International Association of Outsourcing Professional's OWS24, May 21, 2024
Speaker, “AHLA's Speaking of Health Law Podcast: The Patchwork That Is U.S. Health Care Data Privacy,” American Health Law Association, May 14, 2024
Speaker, “AHLA's Speaking of Health Law Podcast: Tracking Technologies: Legal and Operational Perspectives,” American Health Law Association, November 10, 2023
Speaker, “Exploring the Impact of the Pandemic on Information Security and Privacy in the United States,” Global GRC, Data Privacy & Cyber Security Conference, June 28, 2023
Speaker, “AHLA’s Speaking of Health Law Podcast: Connecting the Dots Between Health Apps, HIPAA, and the FTC,” American Health Law Association, July 18, 2022
Presenter, “Connecting the Dots Between Health Apps, HIPAA, and the FTC,” Clearwater
Speaker, “Connecting the Dots Between Health Apps, HIPAA, and the FTC,” American Health Law Association’s Health Care Data: Navigating Legal and Operational Challenges Virtual Conference, April 13, 2022
Panelist, “Healthcare Law,” Cardozo Healthcare Law Society, April 15, 2021
Publications
Co-Author, “Practical Prescriptions for Incident Response and Preparedness in Health Care,” New York Law Journal, May 2024
Co-Author, “FTC Announces Revised Health Breach Notification Rule,” Kirkland Alert, April 2024
Co-Author, “An Unacceptable Risk: Groundbreaking Executive Order Restricts Outbound Transfers of U.S. Personal Data and Government-Related Data to Countries of Concern,” Kirkland Alert, March 2024
Co-Author, “President Biden Signs Executive Order Introducing New Regulatory Framework for AI-Enabled Technology in Healthcare,” Kirkland Alert, December 2023
Co-Author, “It's Time To Prescribe Frameworks For AI-Driven Health Care,” Law360, October 2023
Co-Author, “Washington’s My Health My Data Act,” Kirkland Alert, May 2023
Co-Author, “Digital Health Cos. Should Expect More Scrutiny Amid Growth,” Law360, August 16, 2022
Co-Author, “Health IT Transaction Trends and Considerations,” American Health Law Association, April 15, 2021
Co-Author, “New York - Data Protection Overview,” One Trust Data Guidance, March 2020
Co-Author, “FDA’s Latest Efforts to Strengthen Medical Device Cybersecurity,” Bloomberg Law, November 28, 2018
Recognition
500 X – The Next Generation, Lawdragon, 2024
New York Metro Rising Stars, Super Lawyers, 2023
Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US)
Credentials
Admissions & Qualifications
- 2018New York
Education
- Fordham University School of LawJ.D.2017
- University of Wisconsin-MadisonB.A., Environmental Studies & Political Science2012
with Distinction in the College of Letters & Science