Joel M. Hamme

Joel Hamme retired from Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville on May 1, 2019.

Joel worked on behalf of skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation and long-term care hospitals, home health agencies, intermediate care facilities for the developmentally disabled, assisted living facilities, and safety net providers. Joel understood that clients need to resolve their issues without jeopardizing working relationships with individuals, legislators, and agencies on the other side of the dispute.

Joel spent his career providing advice and counsel to long-term care providers on such matters as Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, provider licensure and certification, litigation, and issues for providers under the Affordable Care Act. He represented national nursing and healthcare associations, as well as a variety of state associations in the long-term care arena. Joel’s work at the national level helped him identify best practices in a variety of areas and leverage that knowledge to assist clients on state-specific representations.

Since 2009, Joel had been included in the highly selective Chambers USA guide as one of America's leading business lawyers. Nominated by clients, business leaders, and other legal advisors, Joel is characterized as “an authority on litigation, regulation and reimbursement issues affecting the long-term care sector.” He was selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America since 2005 and Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers since 2007.

Known for his informative and engaging style, Joel is a prolific author, and a sought after speaker and lecturer on healthcare issues. He was President of the American Health Lawyers Association from 2008 to 2009.

Additionally, Joel has:

• Successfully litigated and settled cases challenging Medicaid rate cuts or freezes on behalf of nursing home providers in multiple states, including Montana, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin.
• Assisted associations of nursing homes, facilities for the developmentally disabled, and hospitals on provider tax programs.
• Represented a number of home health care providers in challenging Medicare limits imposed on the compensation of employed physical therapists and ultimately negotiated settlements with the Department of Health and Human Services.
• Following the government’s threat to file a multi-million dollar civil False Claims Act case against a home health care provider, developed a white paper rebutting the charges and claims, and was shortly thereafter informed that the government would be taking no further action.
• Successfully assisted certain skilled nursing facilities in opting out of the Medicare consolidated rate transition, thereby allowing these providers swifter access to fully phased in rates, resulting in greater compensation for these providers.
• Obtained a completely favorable resolution for a District of Columbia juvenile psychiatric facility that was under attack by the District’s Medicaid program when the city attempted to reclaim more than $1 million in payments made for treatments provided to facility residents in years past.
• Worked with 340B safety net covered entities on provider-based issues, program compliance matters, responses to audits, and remedial and refund plans.