Brittany H. Cone
Biography
Brittany H. Cone, CHC, is a Partner in the firm’s Atlanta office. She focuses her practice on a wide range of regulatory, administrative, and litigation matters in health care.
Certified in Health Care Compliance by the Health Care Compliance Association, Brittany works with providers on the full spectrum of issues they face including Medicare, Medicaid, regulatory compliance, administrative hearings, and appeals.
Brittany received a Juris Doctor from Georgia State University, where she was a member of the Law Review and served as associate symposium editor and associate editor for student notes. She also served as an extern for the Honorable A. Harris Adams of the Georgia Court of Appeals. Brittany completed a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Spanish at Berry College, and she studied at the Center for Cross Cultural Studies in Seville, Spain.
Experience
Brittany is experienced in the day-to-day operations issues faced by providers, ranging from Medicare and Medicaid matters, issues involving third-party payors, corporate and regulatory compliance matters, administrative hearings, and appeals. As denials and under-reimbursement become more prevalent from payors including Medicare Advantage Organizations and private insurance companies, Brittany often works with medical providers seeking reimbursement for or defending against the denial of claims submitted to various payers.
Brittany has worked with hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, personal care homes, assisted living facilities, home health and physician practices, especially focusing on regulatory and operational issues.
Brittany has advised health care providers on compliance with Federal, State, and local laws and regulations. She has counseled clients in managing the regulatory aspects of health care transactions, especially change of ownership licensing and operation issues and Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement issues. Additionally, she assists clients with complying with the Patient Care and Affordable Care Act, including the development of an effective compliance program.
Brittany has also assisted clients with self reporting requirements, internal investigations, including those in response to OIG investigations, the False Claims Act, Stark, and Anti- Kickback. Brittany has spent a significant portion of her practice assisting providers with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), including developing HIPAA policies and procedures and breach response.
Brittany has assisted professionals in malpractice actions in all phases of litigation.
Credentials
Admitted
State Courts:
- Georgia, 2008
- Court of Appeals, Supreme Court
U.S. District Courts:
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
Education
- J.D., Georgia State University
- B.A., cum laude, Berry College
Memberships
- American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA)
- DRI
- Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA)
- Second Wind Dreams, Board Member
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America®, Health Care Law, Best Lawyers®, 2022-2025
Presentations
- We Will Survive – Understanding and Surviving Medicaid Eligibility, Post Unwinding, and Legal Implications of the Legal Implications of the Changing Medicaid Climate
Florida Health Care Association (FHCA); Annual Conference and Trade Show; July 22, 2024 - Long-Term Care Updates
Georgia Health Care Association (GHCA), 2024 Summer Convention; June 19, 2024 - Long-Term Care Issues
State Bar of Georgia, Fundamentals of Health Care Law CLE; February 15, 2024 - Pressing Forward – The State of Medicaid Eligibility and Reimbursement
Georgia Health Care Association, Winter Convention & Expo; January 18, 2024
- Involuntary Discharges & Residents’ Rights
Georgia Health Care Association, Winter Convention & Expo; January 16, 2024 - The New Frontier: Exploring Florida Medicaid
FHCA Annual Conference and Trade Show; July 27, 2023 - Medicaid Eligibility and Reimbursement
2023 GHCA Summer Convention; June 6, 2023 - The ‘Emergency’ is Over: Now What? Legal Updates Associated with Medicare, including the End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
National Association of Benefits and Insurance Professionals-Georgia, Medicare Summit, March 2023 - Healthcare Transactions – A Panel Discussion with Hall Booth Smith
Georgia Health Care Association, Winter Convention & Expo, February, 2023 - Top Three Issues Faced by Long Term Care Providers in 2022
State Bar of Georgia’s Fundamentals of Healthcare Law, February 2022 - Are We Out of the Woods Yet? Legal Updates Associated with Medicate in Light of COVID-19’s Ever Changing Effects on Payment
Georgia Association of Health Underwriters, Medicare Summit, September 2021 - Keeping the Beat of Medicaid’s Drum: How to Keep Up with the Ever-Changing Climate of Medicaid Eligibility and Payment
Florida Health Care Association’s Annual Conference and Trade Show, July 2021 - The Intersection of Regulatory and Personal Injury Considerations- Practical Considerations and the Focused Infection Control Survey
American Health Law Association’s Virtual Long Term Care and the Law Conference, March 2021 - The Top Three Healthcare Issues For Various Sub-Specialists
State Bar of Georgia’s Fundamentals of Healthcare Law, February 2019 - Expectation Management: Connecting and Communicating with Residents and Families
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, June 2018 - Rising to the Top: It’s the Little Things – Controlling the Narrative: Crisis Communication and Expectation Management
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, January 2018 - Establishing a Firm Foundation: What Recent Trends Tell Us About Getting Back to Basics
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, June 2017 - Collaboration with Post-Acute Providers: Reducing Re-admissions and Decreasing Financial, Regulatory, and Liability Risks
Seminar in the South, August 2016 - Disclosures: How Much is Too Much
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, June 2016 - Surrogate Decision Makers, Privacy and Current Trends
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, January 2016 - Preparing for and Navigating the IDR and IIDR Process
Georgia Health Care Association, March 2015. - Making a Molehill out of a Mountain
Legal update on SNF 5 Star Rating System and the IMPACT Act, Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, January 2015 - Update on OIG focus on culture of compliance, creating effective communication systems
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual Convention, January 2014 - Managing the Unmanageable: How effective expectation management can be used in all levels of operations
Georgia Health Care Association, Bi-annual convention, June 2013
Publications
- CMS Finalizes Rule Increasing Minimum Staffing Standards in Nursing Homes
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; April 26, 2024 - New Rule Requires Increased Transparency in Nursing Home Ownership
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; December 13, 2023 - Recent OIG Report Could Result in a Revamp & Refocus of Georgia’s Nursing facility Survey Process
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; September 19, 2023 - Medicaid Unwinding: 4 Steps Nursing Facilities Should Take as the Public Health Emergency Ends
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; April 14, 2023
- Biden-Harris Administration’s Plans to Crack Down on Nursing Homes Indicate Upcoming Uptick in Survey Activity
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog: March 9, 2022 - Texas Court Vacates Provisions of the No Surprises Act Interim Final Rule
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; March 2, 2022 - New Georgia Law Imposes Extensive New Requirements for Georgia Long-Term Care Facilities
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; May 7, 2021 - Annals of Long-Term Care: Brittany Cone & Jordan Johnson Discuss Common Nursing Facility Medicaid Issues, Possible Solutions
Annals of Long-Term Care; April 29, 2021 - Georgia Department of Public Health Updates its Administrative Order to Permit Additional Visitation in Long-Term Care Facilities
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; March 23, 2021 - Georgia Governor Kemp Clarifies Quarantine Requirements for “Fully Vaccinated” Long-Term Care Facility Staff and Residents
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; March 3, 2021 - Major EHR Vendor Settles False Claims Act Allegations
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; February 5, 2021 - Updates to Georgia’s Nursing Home Medicaid Financial Limits and Medicare Increases
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog: December 21, 2020 - HHS Proposes Major Changes to HIPAA’s Privacy Rule
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; December 16, 2020 - Texas District Court Rules That Providers Must Exhaust Patient’s Administrative Remedies to Preserve ERISA Standing
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; November 18, 2020 - Major Health Insurer Forced to Amend Claim Processing Guidelines Due to Violation of Fiduciary Duties Under ERISA
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; November 11, 2020 - Revisions to Georgia’s Medicaid Application Process for Providers during the Public Health Emergency
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; October 9, 2020 - The Georgia Department of Community Health Extends Deadline for Fingerprint Background Checks for Existing Staff
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; October 2, 2020 - Georgia DPH Revises Guidance to Long-Term Care Facilities
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; September 24, 2020 - The Georgia Department of Public Health Issues Reopening Guidance to Long-Term Care Facilities
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; September 17, 2020 - Another Arrow in the Quiver or a Regulatory Risk? Analyzing SB 359’s Immunities for Georgia Providers in the Fight Against COVID-19 Liability
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; July 17, 2020 - Georgia’s Senior Care Reform Bill Adds COVID-19 Requirements to New Legislation for Assisted Living Communities
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog: July 3, 2020 - Vaping Litigation: Another Case of Litigation Before Science?
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; February 16, 2020 - Georgia’s New Long-Term Care Background Check Program
HBS Health Care Highlights Blog; October 22, 2019