Five Questions With: Stephen Zubiago

Stephen Zubiago is a partner with Nixon Peabody LLP.
A health care attorney, Zubiago chairs the firm’s business and finance department. He advises clients on range of corporate and regulatory matters ranging from hospital deals to physicians deals. He works with providers to adapt to the rapidly changing reimbursement models, affected by the Affordable Care Act, and helps prevent income reduction and stagnation.
He talks with Providence Business News about staying ahead of the curve.

PBN: Please tell our readers a little bit about yourself, your profession and your connection to Rhode Island?
ZUBIAGO:
I am energetic, competitive and enjoy a good laugh, often at my own expense. I have been practicing law in Rhode Island for 25 years after clerking one year for a Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice. I like the challenge of using the law to solve client problems and advance their business interests – I like to clear their path to successful businesses. In particular, my work advising health care providers is rewarding due to the legal and business innovations which have caused changes in how health care providers provide services and are reimbursed. I am a lifelong Rhode Islander, having attended St. Augustine’s Grammar School in Providence, Classical High School and Brown University. A significant amount of my practice is representing Rhode Island-based clients.
PBN: How has the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, changed the reimbursement model for health care providers?
ZUBIAGO:
Obamacare has caused a shift and incentivizes health care providers to focus on quality and health care outcomes rather than on the quantity of services provided. In the future, it is hoped that Obamacare will improve the overall health of the population by offering them access to health care services.
PBN: Are providers effectively reconfiguring their own models to comply, or has the changeover been an issue?
ZUBIAGO:
Some health care providers are actively reconfiguring their care model while others have struggled. On the facility side, some large health systems have utilized their size and expertise to develop new models of care, including accountable care organizations. For physicians, the larger groups have focused on demonstrating that they can provide high-quality, low-cost services.
PBN: How have Rhode Island providers dealt with this change compared with others regionally, or nationally?
ZUBIAGO:
Rhode Island health care providers are utilizing many approaches to cope with Obamacare and other financial pressures related to providing health care services. Each of a nonprofit and for-profit hospital systems have established accountable care organizations. Hospitals and other facility providers are entering into payor contracts that provide reimbursement in part based on quality rather than on units of service. Physician groups are consolidating into larger groups, the most recent example being the formation of Orthopedics Rhode Island Inc., which resulted from the consolidation of the three community orthopedic groups.
PBN: Why is it important for providers to stay on top of the regulatory changes in health care and how does someone in your position help them bolster the bottom line?
ZUBIAGO:
Obamacare and other legal, political and financial changes are forcing health care providers to change the way they provide services. Health care providers must adapt to these changes in order to continue to advance their mission. Health care lawyers can provide advice that can enable the providers to not only comply with these changes but to map out a strategy that will allow them to meet their mission and thrive in the future.

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