Kim Harvey Looney

“Health care clients don’t need regulatory complexity translated into abstract legal terms—they need practical guidance they can act on. My goal is to be the counselor who bridges those two disciplines.” —Kim Harvey Looney

Health care clients navigating the intersection of regulatory compliance, fraud and abuse, and complex transactions rely on attorney Kim Looney for counsel that is as fluent in the business of health care as it is in the law.

Kim advises for-profit and nonprofit health care providers, academic medical centers, physician practices, post-acute providers, ambulatory surgery centers, and integrated delivery systems on federal physician self-referral and anti-kickback matters, mergers, acquisitions, government investigations, and the full range of operational and compliance issues in between. She has worked exclusively in health care throughout her career, including pre-law experience as a health care consultant, which has given her a working knowledge of how her clients’ businesses operate and what is at stake when regulatory issues arise.

Kim’s regulatory practice focuses on the Stark Law, the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, the Civil Monetary Penalties Law, the False Claims Act, fee-splitting restrictions, and the corporate practice of medicine doctrine. She counsels clients on compliance program development, reimbursement audits, Medicare certification and reimbursement issues, provider enrollment and credentialing, and CMS and OIG self-disclosures. Clients also seek her advice on operational matters, including licensing, state regulatory filings, medical staff issues, and certificate-of-need (CON) applications and hearings. Kim draws on decades of experience with state and federal agencies in Tennessee and beyond.

On the transactional side, Kim regularly advises clients on the regulatory dimensions of mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures involving health care providers. She analyzes exposure to Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse, Stark and Anti-Kickback implications, and other regulatory risks in connection with structuring these deals. Additionally, she has negotiated managed care agreements, professional service agreements, and physician recruitment and employment contracts for clients across the industry.

Kim is a frequent author and speaker at national and state health law conferences. She has spoken at the Tennessee Bar Association’s (TBA’s) Annual Health Law Conference for 18 of the last 21 years and presented at numerous American Health Law Association (AHLA) programs. She also served on the AHLA Board of Directors; chaired its Membership, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee; and is a past chair of the Health Law Section of both the TBA and the Nashville Bar Association.

What Kim Delivers for Clients

• Counsel When Government Scrutiny Arrives: When health care organizations face a government investigation, CMS or OIG inquiry, or the need to make a self-disclosure, Kim has the experience to guide them through the process—assessing exposure, structuring the response, and working toward resolution.
• End-to-End Compliance Counsel: Kim advises clients across the full arc of a compliance program, from initial design and internal investigations to reimbursement audits and corrective action. She helps clients identify risk early and build stronger programs over time.
• Transactional and Regulatory Work in One Engagement: Health care transactions demand deal instincts and regulatory rigor in equal measure. Kim brings that combination to acquisitions, joint ventures, and integrated delivery system development—giving clients a single counselor who can assess the regulatory implications of a deal's structure while keeping the transaction moving forward.
• Decades of Tennessee Market Knowledge: Kim has advised health care clients in Tennessee and across the Southeast for her entire career, building deep familiarity with Tennessee CON law, state licensing requirements, and the regional health care landscape that informs every engagement.
• A Counselor Who Translates Complexity: Health care regulatory law is dense and overlapping, but Kim’s practice is built on making that complexity accessible. She helps clients understand their options, the tradeoffs involved, and the practical path forward, whether the matter is a routine contract or a government investigation.

• The Best Lawyers in America®, Health Care Law (2007 to 2026); Corporate Law (2016 to 2026); Administrative/Regulatory Law (2018 to 2026); Litigation—Health Care (2019 to 2026)
• Chambers USA, Healthcare: Regulatory in Tennessee (2016 to 2025)
• The Legal 500 United States, Recommended Lawyer, Healthcare: Service Providers (2025)
• Mid-South Super Lawyers, Health Care (2006 to 2025)
• Martindale-Hubbell, AV-Rated
• Nashville Business Journal, Best of the Bar (2010 to 2022), “Healthcare Hero,” and “Woman of Influence”
• Nashville Medical News, InCharge Healthcare

Education

• Vanderbilt Law School (J.D.)
• University of Tennessee (B.S.)

Professional & Community Involvement

Current:

• ABA Bar Foundation, Fellow
• CASA, Board of Directors
• Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation, Trustee
• Middle Tennessee Council Boy Scouts of America, Executive Board
• Nashville Bar Association, Board of Directors
• Nashville Bar Foundation, Fellow; Leadership Law Program, Executive Committee
• Tennessee Bar Association, Health Law Section, Executive Committee

Previous:

• American Health Law Association, Board of Directors; Membership, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, Chair; Physician Practice Groups Committee, Vice Chair
• Attorney for Justice (pro bono recognition by the Tennessee Supreme Court)
• Fifty Forward, Board of Directors
• Franklin Road Academy, Board of Directors
• Friends of Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, Board of Directors
• Heart Gala, Board of Directors, President
• Horticultural Society of Middle Tennessee, Treasurer
• Kappa Alpha Theta, Budget District Director, District VIII (2014 to 2020); Advisory Board, Alpha Eta Chapter (2010 to 2020) 
• Nashville Bar Association, Health Law Section, Past Chair
• Nashville General Hospital Foundation, Board of Directors
• Tennessee Bar Association, Health Law Section, Past Chair; Leadership Law Program, Member, Inaugural Class
• Tennessee Lawyers’ Association for Women, Executive Committee, Past President

​Fundraisers:

Co-chaired various fundraisers to benefit organizations such as:

• American Heart Association
• CASA, Family & Children's Service, and Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation
• Cheekwood
• Fifty Forward
• Franklin Road Academy
• Junior League of Nashville
• Lifeflight and Trauma Survivors Network for Vanderbilt Medical Center
• Monroe Carroll, Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt
• Opera Guild
• Women's Fund of Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

• The ACO Handbook (Author), AHLA/Lexis Publications
• AHLA Health Information 50-State Survey (Author), AHLA/Lexis Publications
• Health Care and Life Sciences Transactions: Understanding the Legal Consequences of the Health Care Deal (Editor and Author), AHLA/Lexis Publications
• Representing Hospitals and Health Systems Handbook (Author), AHLA/Lexis Publications
• Representing Physicians Handbook (Author), AHLA/Lexis Publications