Mara B. McDermott focuses on a variety of issues affecting health industry clients, with a particular emphasis on health policy and regulatory issues facing physicians, physician organizations, health care systems, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies. Ms. McDermott’s work includes advising and counseling on Medicare regulatory issues; designing and implementing legislative and regulatory strategies for clients; and assisting health industry clients with compliance with a wide range of legal and regulatory authorities. She is particularly well-versed in health care delivery system concepts, including accountable care organizations (ACO) and other value-based purchasing initiatives. Ms. McDermott has worked with a number of health industry clients to assess and pursue opportunities available through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center. She also assists clients in representing their interests before members of Congress and their staff, as well as, the administration. Her work in this area includes drafting legislation and congressional testimony.
Prior to joining Akin Gump, Ms. McDermott worked in the Health Policy department at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. In 2007, Ms. McDermott received the ABA-BNA Award for Excellence in the Study of Health Law.
Ms. McDermott has spoken at various conferences regarding ACOs, including the Pay for Performance Summit on “Legal Analysis of the Proposed ACO Regulations” (March 2011), the 2011 CAPG Healthcare Conference on “Proposed ACO Regulations – A Legal Perspective” (May 2011) and the Second National Accountable Care Organization Congress on “ACO Regulations Part 2 - A Deep Dive into the Revised Regulations” (November 2011). She is a participant in the Physician Organizations Leadership Development group of the American Health Lawyers Association.
Ms. McDermott received her J.D. with high honors from The George Washington University School of Law in 2007. In that year, she also received an M.P.H. from The George Washington University. She received her B.A. in 2003 from the University of California, Davis.