Richard D. "Rick" Watters

Richard D. Watters advises all types of health care clients from large hospital systems to individual physicians, nurses and other health care professionals on various matters including general health care laws and regulations, business operations, contracting, governance and corporate issues, licensing/regulatory compliance, the Stark Law, fraud and abuse, EMTALA, Certificates of Need, medical staff issues, practice and business acquisitions, joint ventures, Medicare and Medicaid conditions of participation, and reimbursement and contract negotiations.

Mr. Watters has considerable experience in obtaining Certificates of Need for hospitals, nursing homes and imaging centers. He has also obtained numerous multi-million dollar verdicts for his hospital and nursing home clients in Medicaid reimbursement appeals. He often represents health care institutions and individual professionals before regulatory agencies, licensing bodies, professional organizations, medical staff committees, PROs, Medicare and managed care.

Rick has been selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of Health Care Law, for the last 27 years, most recently in 2018. In 2011, he was awarded the Health Care Lawyer of the Year for the St. Louis area by The Best Lawyers in America®. He has been included in the group of Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers for the field of Health Care each year since 2005, including Top 50 St. Louis Lawyers in 2007, and Top 50 and 100 Lawyers in 2005. He earned his J.D., cum laude, from Saint Louis University School of Law.