Associate Legal Officer - Billing & Reimbursement Compliance

The Institutional Compliance department at MD Anderson Cancer Center plays a critical role in ensuring the organization maintains the highest standards of integrity, regulatory compliance, and ethical business practices. The Billing & Reimbursement Compliance team partners closely with executive leadership, physicians, operational departments, and legal stakeholders to provide strategic guidance on complex healthcare regulatory matters that directly impact institutional operations and patient care.

This Associate Legal Officer role offers the opportunity to serve as a key legal and regulatory advisor within a highly visible and collaborative environment. This position is ideal for an attorney with strong experience in healthcare regulatory compliance, billing and reimbursement matters, fraud and abuse laws, and complex healthcare operational issues who is seeking a strategic leadership opportunity within an academic medical center.

In this role, you will assist in providing legal and regulatory counsel related to hospital billing, professional billing, clinical research billing compliance, CLIA regulations, physician compensation, Stark Law, Anti-Kickback Statute, False Claims Act, Medicare and Medicaid requirements, and other federal and state healthcare regulations. You will work closely with institutional leadership and compliance teams to interpret regulations, assess risk, and support operational compliance initiatives across the organization.

You will also play a key role in the strategic leadership of the Billing & Reimbursement Compliance Program, supporting audits, investigations, education, outreach, policy development, and corrective action initiatives. This includes mentoring compliance staff, overseeing compliance activities, assisting with investigations and external audit responses, and collaborating with departments such as Revenue Operations, Clinical Research Finance, Health Information Management, and Patient Business Services.

Additionally, this role serves as a highly collaborative institutional liaison, working with executive leadership, faculty, operational teams, and UT System representatives to promote compliant billing and reimbursement practices and support enterprise-wide compliance efforts. Strong communication, relationship-building, and leadership skills are essential in navigating complex and sensitive matters across multiple stakeholders.

Success in this role requires strong legal research and analytical abilities, sound judgment, and the ability to manage highly complex regulatory matters with professionalism and discretion. Experience in healthcare law, compliance investigations, billing audits, and healthcare reimbursement regulations is highly valued.

MD Anderson offers a comprehensive total rewards package, including paid medical benefits, generous paid time off, retirement plans, and additional benefits, along with the opportunity to work on high-impact regulatory and compliance initiatives within one of the nation's leading academic medical centers dedicated to excellence in patient care, research, and innovation.

This position is remote within Texas only

Key Functions

Strategic Leadership of the Billing & Reimbursement Compliance Program

Assists the Senior Legal Officer (SLO) with strategic leadership and planning for the Billing & Reimbursement Compliance section of the Institutional Compliance Program. Responsibilities include:

• Providing direction to managers, project managers, program directors, compliance analysts, and other assigned staff to ensure billing and reimbursement compliance matters are identified and resolved through effective auditing, risk monitoring, investigations, and education.

• Mentoring and educating staff on billing and reimbursement compliance regulations and techniques to enhance job performance.

• Collaborating with managers, program directors, and analysts to ensure accurate billing and reimbursement compliance guidance is communicated throughout the institution as part of outreach, education, and training initiatives.

• Creating and conducting billing and reimbursement compliance presentations and educational sessions, as needed.

Billing & Reimbursement Compliance Legal Counsel

Assists the SLO in providing legal and regulatory analysis and counsel related to rules promulgated by the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the State of Texas, and other regulatory authorities, including:

• Professional billing compliance

• Hospital billing compliance

• Clinical research billing compliance

• Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)

• Physician compensation

• Self-Referral/Stark Law (42 U.S.C. § 1395nn et seq.)

• Anti-Kickback Statute (42 U.S.C. §1320a-7b)

• False Claims Act (31 U.S.C. §§3729-3733)

• Medicare and Medicaid Conditions of Participation (CoPs)

• Medicare Secondary Payor (MSP) issues

• Electronic Health Record (EHR) Meaningful Use issues

• State Medicaid issues

• Managed care and private contract issues

Billing & Reimbursement Compliance Liaison

Serves as a Compliance representative throughout the institution and UT System with a high degree of professionalism, independence, and discretion. Responsibilities include:

• Serving as a compliance representative on institutional and UT System committees or project teams, as requested.

• Developing and maintaining strong working relationships with executive staff, faculty, and operational teams to ensure a full understanding of billing and reimbursement compliance policies and guidelines.

• Establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships with departments throughout the institution, including but not limited to:

• Patient Business Services (PBS)

• Revenue Operations and Coding (ROC)

• Clinical Research Finance (CRF)

• Clinical Revenue & Reimbursement (CRR)

• Health Information Management (HIM)

• Initiating or attending meetings with faculty, clinical, research, and administrative staff to implement effective billing compliance processes and strategies.

General Compliance Program Activities

Assists the SLO with general compliance activities, including:

• Providing legal research and analysis related to complex billing and reimbursement compliance matters.

• Creating reports, preparing memoranda, and drafting correspondence and other documents, as requested.

• Addressing hotline calls and compliance concerns and conducting investigations related to billing noncompliance allegations.

• Assisting with corrective action plans and disclosures to federal and state regulatory agencies.

• Overseeing responses to external audit requests related to billing and reimbursement compliance, including requests from:

• Office of Inspector General (OIG)

• Recovery Auditors

• Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs)

• Monitoring refunds to payors resulting from audits and investigations.

• Supporting the development and management of compliance awareness programs, compliance communications, educational initiatives, and compliance website content.

• Monitoring and analyzing new legislation, regulations, Medicare Learning Network (MLN) releases, and OIG Special Advisory Bulletins to assess impact on MD Anderson and support education and compliance initiatives.

• Assisting with the development and revision of departmental and institutional policies and procedures and recommending updates, as appropriate.

• Performing special projects and other duties, as assigned.

Supervision

The Associate Legal Officer, Billing & Reimbursement Compliance, will report to the Senior Legal Officer & Director - Billing & Reimbursement Compliance.

Education

Required:

• Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, Healthcare Administration, Economics, or a related field

• Juris Doctor (J.D.)

Preferred:

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) with successful completion of law or graduate school courses in Business, Healthcare Administration, Healthcare Law and Policy, or Intellectual Policy

Work Experience

Required:

• 2 years of legal experience in a law firm or healthcare organization

Preferred:

• 4 years of legal experience involving business transactions, intellectual property, or healthcare

Licenses and Certifications

Required:

• LAW - Licensed to practice law: State Bar of Texas (within 1 Year)

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, paid time off, retirement, tuition benefits, educational opportunities, and individual and team recognition.

This position may be responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of critical infrastructure, as defined in Section 113.001(2) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code and therefore may require routine reviews and screening. The ability to satisfy and maintain all requirements necessary to ensure the continued security and integrity of such infrastructure is a condition of hire and continued employment.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state, or local laws unless such distinction is required by law.

Additional Information

• Requisition ID: 180816

• Employment Status: Full-Time

• Employee Status: Regular

• Work Week: Days

• Minimum Salary: US Dollar (USD) 123,000

• Midpoint Salary: US Dollar (USD) 154,000

• Maximum Salary : US Dollar (USD) 185,000

• FLSA: exempt and not eligible for overtime pay

• Fund Type: Hard

• Work Location: Remote (within Texas only)

• Pivotal Position: Yes

• Referral Bonus Available?: Yes

• Relocation Assistance Available?: Yes

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