Effective Health Care Contract Negotiations: A Private Equity Transaction Case Study

Rosemary Chandler Wells led two sessions at the American Health Law Association's annual Health Care Transactions conference. She and her co-presenter, Thomas Spellman of Fresenius, shared a private equity transaction case study to highlight effective health care contract negotiations. 

From billion-dollar health system mergers to vendor contracts, health care transactions are driven by contracts, and contracts are driven by negotiations. Each transaction has its own specific considerations, regulations and implications, which a single presentation could not cover. But there are general guidelines, theories and considerations of contract negotiation that can give lawyers the ability to effectively and efficiently represent their clients’ interests.

This presentation began with an overview of some theories of negotiation, as well as a framework for how attorneys can approach contract negotiations. The presentation then touched on understanding leverage, understanding the transaction and the parties, and understanding how other transactions in the “market” impact this negotiation. This presentation featured a case study of a private equity acquisition of a physician practice entity structure as a springboard to discuss various contract negotiation points and critical pivot points for negotiation leverage.