RENÉE M. POPOVITS
Founder of Popovits & Robinson, P.C.
Renée M. Popovits founded the law firm of Popovits & Robinson in 1997 and has been a practicing health care attorney since 1989. Ms. Popovits has represented behavioral healthcare providers, physician practice clients, research organizations, governmental entities and trade associations in corporate transactions, mergers, affiliations, corporate compliance, confidentiality, consent, licensure, reimbursement, contracting, managed care, human resources, data-sharing, HIPAA privacy issues and public policy matters. The law firm represents some of the largest substance abuse treatment providers in the State of Illinois as well as providers with a national presence, including providers in Arizona, California, Texas, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Wisconsin, Missouri, Kansas, New Jersey, and Tennessee. Ms. Popovits was also General Counsel of BHS Management Corp., a company serving multi-state human services and behavioral health care providers. Prior to this she was a healthcare attorney at the Chicago firm of Coffield, Ungaretti & Harris.

She has lectured extensively and published articles on confidentiality issues, corporate compliance programs, HIPAA, risk management issues, child abuse reporting, maternal versus fetal rights, toxicology testing, legislation relating to the treatment of pregnant substance abusers, and other health care legal issues. Ms. Popovits has lectured at national conferences sponsored by CSAT, NAATP, ASAM, NASADAD, ACYF and APHSA, primarily focusing on substance abuse confidentiality, HIPAA, child welfare issues, employee recruitment and retention and corporate compliance. Ms. Popovits also has been a featured speaker on HIPAA issues for the National Governors Association. Ms. Popovits and renowned author William L. White published in February, 2001 the second edition to Critical Incidents, a book addressing ethical issues in substance abuse prevention and treatment. In August, 2001, Ms. Popovits also produced a comprehensive training video for front line counselors on the federal confidentiality regulations governing substance abuse treatment records. In 2002, all of the attorneys at the firm, in conjunction with IADDA, developed a three-volume set of HIPAA policies and procedures and implementation tools for Behavioral Health Care Providers across the country. Ms. Popovits has also published a Chapter on Legal Issues in UCLA’s Addiction Counseling Review and has published a Chapter on Adolescent Substance Abuse: Psychiatric Comorbidity & High Risk Behaviors.

Ms. Popovits has served on Governor Edgar’s Forum on Substance Abuse, Governor Blagojevich’s Labor Transition Subcommittee on Disability Issues and currently is a member of the Women’s Committee of the Illinois Advisory Council on Alcoholism and Other Drug Dependencey. While she served as Chairperson of the Women’s Committee, the first two legislative plans establishing a statewide blueprint for women’s services in Illinois were developed for the Illinois General Assembly pursuant to legislative mandate. She served as Co-Chairperson of the DHS-DASA/DCFS Advisory Committee for five years and is a current member of this interagency committee and its Title IVE Waiver Subcommittee. She is a member of the IADDA Legislative Taskforce and served on the DASA Managed Care Committee. Ms. Popovits serves on the Board of Advisors, and the Legal Advisory Committee of Catholic Charities, served as a Board member to the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (“NAATP”) for 9 years and also served as an NAATP Managed Care Task Force Co-Chair and currently serves on the NAATP Public Policy Committee. Ms. Popovits also serves on the Governors State University Addiction Studies Advisory Board. In 2002, Ms. Popovits received the Compassion in Action Award from Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago. Ms. Popovits is a member of the American Health Lawyers Association, the Illinois Association of Health Care Attorneys and the Illinois State Bar Association.

Ms. Popovits received her undergraduate degree from Saint Xavier College, cum laude and her law degree from DePaul University College of Law, with honors. While in law school, she served on the DePaul Law Review and was the Assistant Editor of the Journal of Health and Hospital Law, a publication of the American Academy of Hospital Attorneys. She served as an adjunct professor at DePaul University where she taught masters level students Introduction to Health Law. Ms. Popovits serves as General Counsel to Chestnut Health Systems, Chestnut Global Partners, LLC and Rosecrance Health Network.

Elizabeth Donohue
Managing Attorney
Elizabeth Donohue, Associate, has been with Popovits & Robinson since 1997. She specializes in the areas of regulatory, corporate, contract, employment, tax-exemption and behavioral health care law and has furnished guidance to clients on a variety of issues, including: confidentiality, client rights, subpoenas and medical record requests and the treatment of minors, risk management and other corporate issues. She has lectured at conferences sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), NAATP, IADDA and the Haymarket Center on substance abuse confidentiality issues and HIPAA privacy and transactions/code sets issues and has conducted numerous trainings on various issues relating to the substance abuse treatment field. Ms. Donohue has drafted, negotiated and finalized numerous contracts, including agreements in the areas of research, joint ventures, managed care, physician and allied health fields and employment.

Ms. Donohue also serves as an Institutional Review Board (IRB) member and additionally acts as the Board’s legal representative. In that capacity she has provided guidance on a variety of research-related issues, including human research subjects rights and the interaction of state laws with IRB policies and procedures and human subject research, as well as assisting in the development of the IRB’s research policies and protocols. She has also assisted the IRB with member education and recent legal updates and trends affecting the IRB and its members. Ms. Donohue is also well-versed in tax-exemption issues, including formation of not-for-profit entities and related tax-exempt transactions.

Ms. Donohue has been a practicing health care attorney since her admission to the Bar in 1998. She is a member of the Illinois Association of Health Care Attorneys, the American Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, the Chicago Bar Association, and the Women’s Health Executive Network. Ms. Donohue received her undergraduate degree from Loyola University and her law degree from Loyola University College of Law. While in law school, Ms. Donohue was a member of the school’s Health Law Society and was also an Articles Editor for the Annals of Health Law, a publication of Loyola University. Ms. Donohue serves as Assistant General Counsel to Chestnut Health Systems and as Special Counsel to A Safe Haven, LLC.

Kelly Whelan
Senior Associate
Kelly T. Whelan, Senior Associate, joined Popovits & Robinson in December, 2009. Ms. Whelan’s practice includes general representation of healthcare providers, including behavioral health facilities, hospitals, and physician groups. In this capacity, Ms. Whelan regularly counsels providers regarding licensing and accreditation issues, Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement, fraud and abuse, federal and state privacy laws, medical staff matters, and the Stark Law. In addition, Ms. Whelan regularly advises healthcare providers with respect to mergers and acquisitions, affiliation and joint venture relationships, managed care agreements, employment relationships and service agreements. Ms. Whelan is well versed in matters affecting tax-exempt entities at the state and federal levels and regularly assists her tax-exempt clients with corporate governance matters.

Ms. Whelan’s practice further includes representation of business entities in a variety of other industries. She has represented purchasers and sellers in a broad range of transactions and regularly counsels corporate clients in connection with day-to-day contracting matters.

Before joining the firm, Ms. Whelan was an associate at Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLP in its Health Care Group. Ms. Whelan received her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Michigan. While in law school, Ms. Whelan was an Associate Editor for the Michigan Journal of Gender & Law and interned at the National Health Law Program in Washington, D.C. She is a member of the American Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, the Illinois Association of Healthcare Attorneys, and the American Health Lawyers Association. Ms. Whelan serves as Assistant General Counsel to Chestnut Global Partners, LLC and Assistant General Counsel to Rosecrance Health Network.