"Intellectual Property: Fueling the Health Care Reform Engine" article, co-authored by Freddie Zufelt and Robert Rehm, to Be Published in Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law
Raleigh, NC (March 8, 2011) – Freddie Zufelt, an attorney in Smith Anderson's Health Care and Information Privacy and Security practice groups, and Robert Rehm, an attorney in Smith Anderson’s Intellectual Property practice group, will be published in the Wake Forest Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law in April. Zufelt's and Rehm's article, "Intellectual Property: Fueling the Health Care Reform Engine," investigates recent health care reform initiatives in the United States, specifically as provided by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (the "HITECH Act") and its focus on electronic health records ("EHR"), and the role of United States intellectual property laws in supporting and furthering such initiatives.
The article, which explores the ways in which the protections and motivations inherent in United States intellectual property laws, combined with the various incentives offered by the HITECH Act, will serve as a driving impetus for the development of an expanded market for the health information technology required to implement EHR.
Zufelt, a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP), advises clients in a wide range of industries on issues related to the collection, use, and disclosure of sensitive personal information. He regularly represents health care providers, payers, and information technology vendors in connection with the development, adoption, and license of health information technology, and on legal matters related to the adoption and implementation of “certified” EHRs under the HITECH Act, the myriad requirements necessary to qualify for “meaningful use” incentive payments, and on the implementation of privacy and security compliance solutions.
Rehm regularly represents a variety of clients in connection with software-related transactions, such as license agreements, due diligence investigations and intellectual property audits directed to software-based assets, source code escrow arrangements, and other transactions involving commercialization of software products and related assets. His practice generally focuses on technology licensing and commercialization and the acquisition, licensing and protection of patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, and other intellectual property rights. An important part of Rehm's practice involves helping health care clients integrate software-based technologies, including those directed to EHR, into their respective practices. Rehm was a practicing electrical engineer for 16 years prior to embarking on a legal career.
