Healthcare is one of the most highly regulated industries in the world, where legal decisions often influence not only organizations but also the quality of patient care and the sustainability of medical practices. As healthcare policies continue to evolve alongside changing reimbursement models and compliance requirements, experienced legal professionals play a critical role in helping physicians and healthcare organizations navigate an increasingly complex landscape. Their guidance enables medical professionals to focus on delivering care while confidently addressing the legal and regulatory challenges that accompany modern healthcare.
Few professionals have contributed to this field with the depth, consistency, and influence of Alice G. Gosfield. Throughout her entire legal career, she has remained dedicated to healthcare law, concentrating on the representation of physicians and their group practices. Her work spans Medicare reimbursement, managed care, fraud and abuse compliance, medical staff matters, and issues surrounding value and quality in healthcare delivery.
Beyond her legal practice, Alice has become one of the most respected voices in the industry, earning recognition as a speaker who can translate complex legal and regulatory issues into practical insights. She has delivered lectures to physicians, healthcare professionals, executives, boards, and practice managers across the healthcare sector, and has been invited to speak by leading organizations including the American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA), the American Medical Association (AMA), the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the Healthcare Compliance Association, the American College of Cardiology, as well as numerous national, state, and regional healthcare organizations. Her ability to bridge legal expertise with real-world healthcare challenges has made her one of the profession’s most respected and enduring authorities.
From Public Service to a National Healthcare Law Practice
Alice has spent more than 50 years practicing healthcare law in Philadelphia, focusing exclusively on national transactional and regulatory matters. Her journey began during law school when she joined a War on Poverty program as a summer intern. At the time, healthcare law had not yet emerged as a distinct legal discipline, and the initiative aimed to develop legal frameworks that would improve healthcare access for underserved communities. Following graduation, she joined the program as a staff attorney.
When funding for the initiative came to an end, she and her husband, who had also served as a staff attorney, established a consulting firm that advised state and federal agencies. Their work included developing hospital licensing regulations in Pennsylvania, HMO regulations, certificate of need regulations in West Virginia, and Medicaid regulations in Wisconsin, among other projects. In 1978, they transitioned into private practice, founding their law firm together. After her husband joined a large law firm in 1986, Alice incorporated her own practice and continued independently. By choice, she has always maintained a small firm, and today works alongside her son, Daniel Shay, who has been her associate for more than two decades.
Finding the Right Calling in Healthcare Law
Healthcare was part of Alice’s life long before she entered the legal profession. As the daughter of a cardiologist, she spent much of her childhood in her father’s medical office, beginning at the age of nine. She later volunteered as a hospital candy striper and worked summer jobs in the hospital laboratory, gaining firsthand exposure to the realities of patient care and medical practice.
By the time she completed law school, she often felt she understood the practice of medicine better than the practice of law. Since healthcare law was only beginning to emerge as a specialized field, it offered the ideal opportunity to combine both worlds. That natural connection ultimately shaped the direction of her entire career.
Building a Practice by Creating the Market
One of the defining moments in Alice’s career came from recognizing an opportunity that many physicians had yet to see. Her goal was to represent doctors on regulatory and transactional matters, but in 1974, few physicians believed they needed that kind of legal guidance. Rather than waiting for demand to develop, she effectively created her own market and then educated it.
She discovered an ability to explain complicated legal and regulatory issues in ways that were both engaging and easy to understand. Medical Group Management Association affiliates across the United States regularly invited her to speak, giving her the opportunity to educate physician practice managers while expanding her professional reach. She ultimately delivered presentations in every state, often returning multiple times. Those speaking engagements became the foundation of a nationally recognized healthcare law practice and established her reputation as a trusted advisor within the medical community.
A Commitment to Excellence That Builds Lasting Relationships
Alice believes her long-term success is rooted less in formal leadership principles and more in an unwavering commitment to excellence. She has always focused on delivering a highly personal, service-oriented experience, ensuring every client receives thoughtful attention and practical guidance.
Clients often ask how she has maintained such lasting professional relationships throughout her career. Her answer is remarkably simple. She believes in treating every client the way she would want to be treated herself. That straightforward philosophy has earned trust, loyalty, and enduring partnerships over decades of practice.
Public Policy Work That Strengthened Legal Expertise
A defining part of Alice’s career has been her three decades of public policy work, which broadened her perspective on healthcare and strengthened her effectiveness as a lawyer. She served as President of the National Health Lawyers Association, spent 12 years on the board of the National Committee for Quality Assurance, including five years as its chair, and contributed to four committees of the Institute of Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences. She also played a role in designing the innovative PROMETHEUS Payment® model.
Alongside her policy work, Alice has edited the Health Law Handbook, publishing a new edition each year for 39 years through Thomson Reuters. She also co-authors Medicare and Medicaid Fraud and Abuse with Dan Shay, updating it annually. Together, these contributions have expanded the depth of knowledge and practical insight that she brings to every client engagement.
Staying Informed in a Constantly Changing Industry
Remaining current in healthcare law requires continuous learning, and Alice has built that into her professional routine. She and her team are active members of the American Health Law Association, relying on its extensive educational resources while also following healthcare industry publications beyond the legal field to gain a broader understanding of emerging developments.
Her commitment to knowledge sharing continues through education as well. Dan Shay serves as co-chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s annual Health Law Institute, where Alice has been a regular speaker for many years. Staying closely connected to both the legal profession and the healthcare industry allows the firm to provide clients with advice that reflects current regulations, policy developments, and industry realities.
