Philadelphia, Meet the Strike Force

A big announcement. A longer enforcement runway.

Nineteen defendants. Alleged home care fraud. Plenty of officials at the podium. But the bigger story is what happens after the cameras leave.

Paul Werner examines the healthcare fraud strike force’s expansion into Philadelphia and what sustained investigative attention could mean for providers throughout the region. He also looks at the uncomfortable space between billing mistakes, compliance failures and criminal allegations, where the details matter considerably more than the headlines.

If your compliance program hasn’t had a serious stress test lately, this is a good reason to move it up the list.

View the entire Fraud Files playlist on YouTube!

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

There are very few people Vincent Buttaci admits to being afraid of. Healthcare lobbyist Laurie Clark is one of them.

In this episode of Almost Clinical, hosts Vincent, John Leardi, and Paul Werner sit down with one of New Jersey's most respected healthcare advocates for a conversation that spans decades of legislative battles, regulatory challenges, pharmacy reform efforts, and hard-earned lessons about influence, negotiation, and playing the long game.

A longtime advocate for physicians, pharmacists, healthcare organizations, and professional associations, Laurie offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at how policy actually gets made – and why getting things done often requires far more relationship-building than headline-grabbing victories.

Along the way, the group revisits the legislative fight that first put Laurie and Vin on opposite sides of the table, explores the evolution of pharmacy benefit manager reform in New Jersey, discusses the realities of working with regulators and administrative agencies, and explains why some of the most important victories in healthcare happen long before anyone walks into a courtroom.

Other highlights include:

• How Laurie built one of New Jersey's leading independent healthcare lobbying practices
• Why the best advocates focus on solving problems, not just winning arguments
• The legislative battle that transformed Laurie and Vin from adversaries into collaborators
• What healthcare providers need to understand about building influence with legislators and regulators
• Lessons learned from years of fighting for independent pharmacies and pharmacy benefit manager reform
• Why professional associations remain one of the most effective tools for driving change
• The importance of credibility, transparency, and keeping communication lines open, even during difficult negotiations
• Why playing the long game almost always beats chasing a quick win

BONUS: Stay until the end to hear Laurie explain why, despite wanting to "kill" Vin during one legislative battle, she ultimately ended up hiring his firm.

Produced by Buttaci, Leardi & Werner, this episode is a reminder that influence isn't about being the loudest person in the room. It's about showing up, building trust, and staying at the table long enough to make progress.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

New Jersey’s new Integrated Healthcare Facility regulations are here — and they fundamentally change how outpatient healthcare services can be delivered across the state.

In this episode of Almost Clinical, hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner unpack what may be the most significant behavioral healthcare licensing reform New Jersey has seen in the last 20 years.

The guys discuss:

• The collapse of the old fragmented licensing structure
• What integrated healthcare actually means under the new regulations
• The practical impact on behavioral health operators
• New staffing, supervision, and compliance obligations
• How the state is reshaping outpatient substance use disorder and mental health treatment
• Why physical therapy, primary care, and behavioral health may finally operate under one coordinated system
• The operational and reimbursement challenges providers should expect next

The hosts also explore the broader policy implications of the new rules, including harm reduction, relapse management, whole-person treatment, and the increasing expectation that behavioral health providers operate with the same sophistication and compliance infrastructure as traditional healthcare systems.

If you own, operate, advise, or invest in healthcare facilities in New Jersey, this episode is essential listening.

Powered by Buttaci, Leardi & Werner.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

Patient complaints are inevitable. Catastrophes aren’t.

Hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner have seen patient complaints turn into licensing board actions, payer audits, malpractice claims, regulatory investigations, and even criminal exposure.

And many of these started with a simple question about a bill, a scheduling issue, or a misunderstanding that was handled poorly by a provider.

In this episode of Almost Clinical, the guys walk through the real-world risks behind patient complaints and the practical steps healthcare providers can take to manage them before they spiral.

Highlights include:

• Why ignoring a complaint is never an option
• The critical mistakes that immediately escalate risk
• How empathy isn’t just good customer service, it’s risk management
• The importance of having a clear internal chain of command
• When a situation can be handled internally – and when it can’t
• How AI and “informed” patients are changing the nature of complaints
• Real examples of small issues turning into major legal problems

The takeaway is simple: you can’t control what patients say, but you can control how you respond. And that response will determine what happens next for you and your business.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

Physician non-competes aren’t about fairness. They’re about leverage.

In this episode of Almost Clinical, hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner break down the reality behind physician restrictive covenants – what they’re supposed to do, what they actually do, and why they’ve gotten so aggressive.

What used to be simple – one year, ten miles – has turned into multi-location, multi-state restrictions that many doctors can’t realistically challenge, even when they should.

So, the real question isn’t just whether these agreements are enforceable.

It’s who can afford to fight them, and who can’t.

The guys explore:

• What restrictive covenants actually include and what really matters;
• Why non-competes in healthcare are expanding and who benefits;
• The “rule of reason” test and why it’s anything but predictable;
• How private equity has changed the landscape;
• The real-world problem: most physicians can’t afford to challenge bad contracts;
• The overlooked stakeholder: patients and their ability to follow their doctor;
• Why non-solicitation clauses may matter more than non-competes; and
• Legislative efforts to rein things in and why clarity is still unlikely.

And perhaps most importantly: Why the smartest move often isn’t litigation – it’s negotiation.

Because in a system this fact-specific and this expensive, “winning” in court is rarely the clean outcome anyone thinks it is.

Bottom line: Non-competes in healthcare aren’t just legal issues – they’re business decisions. And increasingly, they’re messy ones.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

What happens when a neurotypical partner finds himself navigating two diagnosed ADHD partners?

What does it look like when successful professionals discover later in life that the “quirks” they’ve worked around for decades have names, diagnoses, and treatment options?

And if you’re a young professional - in law, healthcare, or any demanding field - trying to learn your craft while navigating strong personalities and competing management styles, how do you know you’re not failing… but simply wired differently?

In this episode of Almost Clinical, powered by Buttaci, Leardi, & Werner, hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner pull back the curtain on something the professional world – including law firms, healthcare facilities, and medical practices – didn’t meaningfully discuss until recently: neurodiversity in the workplace.

What begins as an honest look at one firm’s internal dynamic becomes a broader conversation about leadership, performance, and self-awareness in high-pressure industries.

Vincent and John share their late-in-life ADHD diagnoses and how that awareness reshaped the way they practice law, advise healthcare clients, and lead teams.

Paul offers the equally important perspective of building structure, process, and adaptability inside a partnership where different minds operate differently – and how that balance contributes to a strong, effective firm.

The episode explores:

• What ADHD actually looks like in high-performing professionals, including attorneys, physicians, and healthcare executives
• Medication, stigma, and the power of self-awareness
• Practical workplace adjustments that help professionals perform at their best - not out of legal obligation, but as a matter of effective leadership
• Why neurodiversity isn’t about lowering standards, it’s about unlocking potential
• How law firms and healthcare facilities alike can build environments where different minds thrive

At its core, this episode isn’t about labels.

It’s about understanding how people work, especially in high-pressure industries where patient care, compliance, litigation, and operational risk are all on the line.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

Most licensing board letters are written to sound harmless when they are, in fact, anything but. In this episode of Almost Clinical, powered by Buttaci, Leardi, & Werner, hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner break down what really happens when a professional licensing board comes knocking – and why even the most “innocuous” inquiry can spiral into something far more serious.

Drawing on decades of experience defending licensed professionals across New York and New Jersey, the conversation covers:

• Why licensing board inquiries are never just “requests for information”
• How minor complaints can quickly expand into full-scale investigations
• The real, long-term consequences of board discipline (including public records and Data Bank reporting)
• Why trying to “explain it yourself” often makes things wors
• The hidden risks in billing disputes, patient complaints, and mandatory reporting
• How early decisions — especially written responses — can shape the entire outcome

Along the way, the hosts share real-world war stories, practical guidance, and a few hard truths about how licensing boards actually operate behind the scenes.

If your livelihood depends on a professional license – or you employ people whose livelihoods do – this is a conversation worth hearing before you ever receive that letter.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.

Every firm has an origin story. This one starts in a bathroom, involves a risky career move away from a stable Big Law job, and turns into a 20-year healthcare law firm that still works.

In this episode of Almost Clinical, healthcare attorneys Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner reflect on the founding and evolution of Buttaci, Leardi & Werner, a healthcare law firm built without a roadmap – and kept together by trust, judgment, and a willingness to figure things out in real time.

The conversation begins with the “then”: shared office space, dictated letters, loud fax machines, and taking the healthcare legal work that paid the bills. The hosts explain what practicing healthcare law looked like in the mid-2000s and how learning on the fly shaped the firm’s approach to clients, risk, and problem-solving.

From there, the discussion moves to the “now.” Buttaci, Leardi & Werner operates as a nationally respected healthcare boutique representing physicians, healthcare organizations, and healthcare investors in regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters. The hosts break down how technology, consolidation, and increasingly sophisticated clients have changed the role of healthcare attorneys from ‘document donkeys’ to true business advisors..

The episode closes with a look ahead. Vincent, John, and Paul discuss where healthcare law and healthcare business are headed next, how artificial intelligence and automation are reshaping legal practice, and why independence, trust, and partnership still matter in a rapidly consolidating healthcare industry.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How Buttaci, Leardi & Werner was founded and why the early years mattered
• What practicing healthcare law looked like 20 years ago versus today
• How trust and disagreement support long-term law firm partnerships
• The shift from survival-mode legal work to intentional practice growth
• How technology changed healthcare law, firm operations, and client expectations
• Why mentorship in law still requires learning the hard way
• What’s next for healthcare providers, healthcare investors, and healthcare attorneys

Produced by Buttaci, Leardi & Werner, this episode is less about nostalgia and more about longevity – what holds up over time, what falls apart, and what’s worth carrying forward in healthcare law and business.

Join Almost Clinical hosts Vincent Buttaci, John Leardi, and Paul Werner as they challenge each other’s views on how to operate, invest, and succeed in healthcare’s rapidly shifting landscape, translate legalese into business sense for healthcare providers, executives, private equity professionals, and strategic stakeholders, and explore the issues shaping the business of medicine today and tomorrow.