Miller Canfield Expands National Health Law Practice
Leading Health Law Attorneys from Chicago and Ann Arbor Join Firm
The law firm of Miller Canfield announced today that it is expanding its health law and life sciences practices with the addition of four attorneys with extensive knowledge and experience in these fields. Joining Miller Canfield as principals in the newly opened Chicago office are Michele B. Bush and Charles F. MacKelvie, together with attorney Heather A. Tullio. Rachel Nosowsky joins the firm as senior counsel in the Ann Arbor, Michigan office from the University of Michigan’s legal staff.
Bush, MacKelvie and Tullio join Miller Canfield from the Chicago law firm MacKelvie & Associates, P.C., which has a nationwide clientele focusing on Medicare, transactional, regulatory, administrative, nonprofit, corporate, tax, governance and litigation matters. Nosowsky served as assistant general counsel to the University of Michigan’s health system in the areas of human research; governance, ethics and compliance; medical staff bylaws, credentialing and peer review; patient privacy; and clinical services contracting.
Miller Canfield’s Health Law practice consists of 30 experienced attorneys who represent hospitals, physicians and other health care providers in regulatory, transactional and litigation matters. Earlier this year, the firm hired Billee Lightvoet Ward in Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ward is a former corporate attorney at Borgess Health Alliance, Inc.
“With the addition of these leading health lawyers augmenting the retained expertise of our experienced health lawyers, we are excited for the opportunities and resources this creates for clients and potential clients of the firm,” said Mark E. Wilson, leader of Miller Canfield’s Health Law practice. “This strategic expansion uniquely situates us to efficiently handle complex and leading-edge health law matters, allows us to continue to provide ‘been there, analyzed that’ expertise in all areas of health law, and expands our already extensive knowledge of the issues facing clients in the rapidly emerging life sciences and bio-tech industry.”
Michele B. Bush focuses her practice on general corporate and health law including transactional, operational, regulatory, nonprofit corporate, governance and employment matters. Her most significant experience benefiting Miller Canfield’s clients includes serving as associate general counsel for Advocate Health Care, one of the largest vertically integrated health systems in the United States, serving northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. She specialized in transactional and regulatory matters, and was primary counsel for the for-profit entities, physician-hospital joint ventures, managed care and alternate delivery systems.
Her experience also includes former general counsel and corporate secretary for the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of The United Methodist Church, one of the top pension funds in the state of Illinois, United States, and world, respectively, as well as former general counsel, Board of Education in Rockford, Illinois, the third largest public school system in the state.
Bush has served on the board of directors of the Illinois Association of Healthcare Attorneys of the Illinois Hospital Association and as a hearing officer for the State Universities Civil Service System. She received her LL.M. in Health Law from Loyola University Chicago School of Law and her J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law. Her B.A., with honors, is from Northwestern University. She resides in Chicago.
Charles F. MacKelvie founded MacKelvie & Associates, P.C. in 1993. He is a 34-year veteran health care and business lawyer and has a broad-based health care practice, focusing on Medicare, transactional, regulatory, administrative, nonprofit, corporate, tax and governance and litigation matters. He began his career as chief hearing officer of Medicare Provider Reimbursement Appeals for the Blue Cross Association, the chief fiscal intermediary for all Blue Cross “plans.” In his career, he has argued more than 300 cases before the Department of Health and Human Services’ Provider Reimbursement Review Board, which is believed to be among the most reimbursement cases of any practitioner in the United States.
MacKelvie has been general and special counsel to numerous hospitals and health systems as well as numerous health agencies and physician groups. He speaks before associations and professional organizations on a variety of legal and financial issues currently impacting hospitals, health care systems and alternate delivery systems. He received his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, an LL.M. in Taxation from the Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent College of Law, and his J.D. from The John Marshall Law School. His B.S. is from the University of Wisconsin. He resides in Park Ridge, Illinois.
In her 14-year legal career, Rachel Nosowsky has represented hospitals, academic medical centers, physician groups, clinical laboratories, managed care plans and other health care providers and payors in a broad range of health law and regulatory compliance matters. While assistant general counsel at the University of Michigan, her practice focused on human subjects research; corporate governance; ethics and compliance; medical staff bylaws, credentialing and peer review; patient privacy; and clinical services contracting.
Nosowsky has spoken extensively to national audiences on human research compliance and health privacy issues, including most recently for the National Cancer Institute, American Health Lawyers Association, National Association of College and University Attorneys, and Health Care Compliance Association. She received her J.D. from the University of California at Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law. She received her B.A., cum laude, from Carleton College in Minnesota. She resides in Ann Arbor.
Heather A. Tullio received her J.D., cum laude, from The John Marshall Law School, where she graduated in the top ten percent of her class and received numerous academic awards. Her B.A., with highest honors, is from DePaul University. She resides in Chicago.
The law firm of Miller Canfield was established in Detroit in 1852 and employs more than 800 in offices in Michigan, Illinois, Massachusetts, Florida, New York, Canada and Poland.