Brian R. Stimson

Partner

Washington
2100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Suite 350S
Washington, District of Columbia 20037

Biography

Brian is a Litigation and Healthcare partner based in Washington, D.C. He previously served as the Acting General Counsel and Principal Deputy General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), in Washington, D.C. Brian’s overarching goal at AGG is to deliver exceptional value to healthcare providers through more personalized service and creative fee structures.

Brian works to secure full reimbursement for providers. When administrative agencies make a rule or determination that reduces government reimbursement, Brian challenges the action on behalf of providers or their professional association. When major commercial payers deny or underpay claims, he brings a civil action or arbitration for the provider to recover what is owed.

Providers frequently retain Brian to defend them in federal and state administrative audits, investigations, and enforcement actions. He is uniquely equipped to defend providers in such matters as a former high-level HHS official. He has successfully guided an array of providers through revocations, payment suspensions, overpayment recoupments, Medicare debt collections, surprise billing investigations, civil rights investigations, Provider Relief Fund audits, and False Claims Act actions.

Providers also look to Brian as a trusted advisor on the regulatory issues adjacent to his litigation practice. Those issues include managed care contracting, the federal and state surprise billing laws, Medicare fee-for-service reimbursement, the Medicare Advantage program, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”), and the federal rulemaking process generally.

The insights that Brian brings from his years at HHS are what sets him apart from other lawyers. At HHS, Brian was the lead in-house lawyer for administrative litigation. He personally drafted and cleared agency rules as part of the inter-agency process and was a liaison to both the Office of Counsel to the Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Justice. His advice is pragmatic and solution-oriented because he knows how the federal government works, and always makes the client’s business objective his number one priority.

Brian was a partner at an Am Law 50 law firm in Atlanta, Georgia, before joining HHS in 2017. He was a partner at another Am Law 50 law firm in Washington, D.C., from 2021 through 2023.

Experience

  • Obtained settlements of Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) actions challenging denials of provider relief funds that resulted in payment of $43 million and $10 million to not-for-profit health systems.*
  • Represented state hospital association in state APA action challenging state regulation implementing statutory limits on commercial reimbursement of hospitals, which prompted a state legislative amendment that restored millions in reimbursement for each member hospital.*
  • Advised critical access hospitals on administrative appeals to Medicare Administrative Contractors (“MACs”) that resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional reimbursement for each individual critical access hospital.*
  • Obtained favorable settlement for Medicare provider in OMHA appeal from denial of application for Medicare provider enrollment arising from corporate change of ownership.
  • Persuaded HHS Office of General Counsel, CMS, and Medicare Administrative Contractor to withdraw Local Coverage Determination based on failure to comply with procedural requirements.*
  • Secured closure of CMS investigation of not-for-profit health system for alleged noncompliance with federal No Surprises Act (“NSA”) requirements regarding good faith estimates for self-pay patients.*
  • Counseled providers on strategy for responding to health plan’s balance billing audit, which forced the health plan to suspend the audit.
  • Secured closure of state attorney general investigation of physician group practice that allegedly violated medical billing provisions of consumer protection statute.*
  • Represented nonprofit health system in successful commercial arbitration against health insurer.*

 *Representative matters handled while practicing at another law firm.

    Credentials

    • University of Georgia School of Law, Juris Doctor,
      cum laude
    • Vanderbilt University, Bachelor of Arts
    • District of Columbia
    • State of Georgia
    • District of Columbia Court of Appeals
    • Court of Appeals of Georgia
    • U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia
    • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
      • American Health Lawyers Association
        • Member, 2021-24
        • Vice Chair, Payers Plans and Managed Care Practice Group, 2007-17
      • State Bar of Georgia
        • Health Law Section, Executive Committee Member, 2012-18
      • Federalist Society, Member

    Recognition

    • Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers, Healthcare, 2024
    • Superior Service Medal, awarded by the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (“ASPR”) of HHS for contributions during public health crises, 2020