Job Description

LH Careers - Lexington Health Legal Services
Full Time
Day Shift
M-F, 8a - 5p

Lexington Health is a comprehensive network of care that includes six community medical and urgent care centers, nearly 80 physician practices, more than 9,000 health care professionals and Lexington Medical Center, a 607-bed teaching hospital in West Columbia, South Carolina. It was selected by Modern Healthcare as one of the Best Places to Work in Healthcare and was first in the state to achieve Magnet with Distinction status for excellence in nursing care. Consistently ranked as best in the Columbia Metro area by U.S. News & World Report, Lexington Health delivers more than 4,000 babies each year, performs more than 34,000 surgeries annually and is the region's third largest employer.

Lexington Health also includes an accredited Cancer Center of Excellence, the state’s first HeartCARE Center, the largest skilled nursing facility in the Carolinas, and an Alzheimer’s care center. Its postgraduate medical education programs include family medicine and transitional year residencies, as well as an informatics fellowship.

Associate General Counsel reports to the SVP General Counsel and works closely with outside counsel as directed by the SVP General Counsel, in-house attorneys, and Hospital representatives. The person in this position has a comfort level with healthcare's regulatory framework and reimbursement programs, with particular skills in drafting contracts, developing policies, advising staff and management on legal issues, regulatory, and administrative matters. This position is also responsible to be the primary legal resource for one or more key practice areas, (e.g. employment law) across all of Hospital’s sites when legal involvement is needed as designated by the SVP General Counsel.

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum Education: Graduation from an accredited School of Law with strong academic record.

Minimum Years of Experience: 5 Years of work in a law firm or in-house legal department, including at least 3-5 years of health law experience.

Substitutable Education & Experience: None.

Required Certifications/Licensure: Current member of the South Carolina State Bar. If not a member of the South Carolina State Bar, willingness and eligibility to join South Carolina State Bar promptly as decided by SVP General Counsel.

Required Training: Ability and willingness to demonstrate and maintain competency as required for job title and the unit/area(s) of assignment; Ability to conduct interviews, draft pleadings, Stark and Anti-kickback laws, and participates in court and administrative proceedings.

Essential Functions

• Serves as a legal resource for Hospital and its subsidiaries as requested by the leadership and as directed and approved by SVP General Counsel, which could include but is not limited to:
  • Stark and Anti-Kickback laws and regulations.
  • Physician Agreements.
  • Agreements in all other areas of Health Care.
  • Reviewing agreements, policies and procedures.
  • Participating in credentialing and medical staff activities.
  • Responding to operational events involving law enforcement, patients, consent issues, employment and adverse events .
  • Supporting strategic planning activities involving legal issues.
  • Assisting with governance activities.
  • Coordinating and monitoring litigation and assisting in risk management activities.
  • Engaging and monitoring contractors providing services that are to remain attorney/client privileged.
  • Providing legal updates to the board(s) and leadership.
  • Assisting with other matters as requested by the SVP General Counsel.
• Willingness to work with employees at all levels within the organization to identify and resolve legal concerns and to facilitate process changes to prevent future occurrences as needed.
• Prioritizes projects, stay on task and manage a fast-paced work environment related to varying legal demands across numerous subject areas.
• Exhibits behaviors consistent with standards for performance improvement and organizational values.
• Provide back-up legal services for legal needs across Hospital’s sites and clinics.
• Coordinate and oversee outside legal resources for Hospital and its subsidiaries as approved by the General Counsel.
• Support physician contracting and documentation across all Hospital sites.
• Serve as the primary legal resource for one or more key practice areas, (e.g. employment law) across all Hospital sites.
• Engage and coordinate the engagement of outside legal resources relative to key practice area(s) assigned by the General Counsel.
• Maintain confidentiality in matters relating to patient/family.
• Interact with patients/families with a variety of developmental and sociocultural backgrounds.
• Provide information to patients and families to reduce anxiety and convey an attitude of acceptance, sensitivity, and caring.
• Maintain professional relationships and convey relevant information to other members of the health care team within the facility and any applicable referral agencies.
• Initiate communication with peers about clinical priorities for care.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Relay information appropriately over telephone, pagers, and other communication devices.
• Accept assignments based on acuity, needs, and the qualifications and competencies of self and of other staff members.
• Work closely with other attorneys, the Compliance Officer and staff.
• Report on legal matters to those who require information, including SVP General Counsel, Leadership and other staff.
• Initiate problem solving and conflict resolution skills to foster effective work relationships with peers.
• Report to work on time and as scheduled.
• May take call for Legal Department as assigned by the SVP General Counsel.
• Attend staff meetings, in-services, and continuing education.
• Contribute to annual reviews of peer performance as requested by the unit/area supervisor, manager, or director.
• Assist in the development of indicators, thresholds, study methods, and data collection as assigned.
• Respond to problems/opportunities to improve care/customer service.
• Support involvement in the hospital’s Performance Improvement initiative.
• Participate in and maintain competencies required for the position and specific unit/area(s) of assignment.
• Performs all other duties as assigned by the SVP General Counsel.

We are committed to offering quality, cost-effective benefits choices for our employees and their families:

• Day ONE medical, dental and life insurance benefits
• Health care and dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSAs)
• Employees are eligible for enrollment into the 403(b) match plan day one. LHI matches dollar for dollar up to 6%.
• Employer paid life insurance – equal to 1x salary
• Employee may elect supplemental life insurance with low cost premiums up to 3x salary
• Adoption assistance
• LHI provides its full-time employees employer paid short-term disability and long-term disability coverage after 90 days of eligible employment
• Tuition reimbursement
• Student loan forgiveness

Equal Opportunity Employer
It is the policy of Lexington Health to provide equal opportunity of employment for all individuals, and to remain compliant with applicable state and federal laws and regulations. Lexington Health strives to provide a discrimination-free environment, and to recruit, select, on-board, and employ all employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, national origin, veteran status, or pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, including but not limited to, lactation. Lexington Health endeavors to upgrade and promote employees from within the hospital where possible and consistent with the employee’s desires and abilities and the hospital’s needs.