Scott Lynch
General Counsel
Health Management Associates
St. Paul, MN
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With extensive legal, compliance and executive management experience, Scott Lynch is recognized for driving innovative strategy development and building sustainable businesses in rapidly changing environments.
Before joining Health Management Associates, Scott served as the senior vice president and chief legal officer for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN), overseeing the company’s legal, compliance, audit and enterprise risk management areas. In this role, he successfully defended the company against civil investigation demands, qui tam actions and other governmental investigations. He led recovery efforts against pharmaceutical and other entities, reclaiming over $500 million, and led BCBSMN’s suit against the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) under the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) risk corridor provisions, recovering $250 million after favorable rulings.
Whether working as in-house and outside counsel, on the plaintiff or the defense side, Scott has proven success in and out of the courtroom. For Novartis Nutrition Corporation, he led the team that reached a $50 million settlement with the Department of Justice, allowing Novartis to avoid exclusion from Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs. Scott has experience in local, state, federal, and administrative proceedings, having represented a range of clients, including insurance companies, health plans, provider-side health companies, and pharmaceutical companies. He has provided legal counsel and representation on various topics, including medical malpractice, employment practices, liability coverage, Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and healthcare litigation.
Scott is also a recognized authority on compliance. For BCBSMN, Scott spearheaded the revision of the corporate structure to bifurcate non-regulated business into a separate holding company providing more autonomy from regulatory scrutiny faced by the insurance businesses. With Novartis, he was a member of the company’s Global Compliance Leadership Team. As Prime Therapeutics’ chief compliance officer, he developed and implemented the company’s compliance program and oversaw all compliance and regulatory affairs.
Leveraging his leadership and strategic planning skills, Scott has demonstrated his executive management abilities. While with BCBSMN, Scott served as the interim president and chief executive officer during a critical leadership transition. At Prime Therapeutics, together with the CEO, Scott was the key architect on strategy, business planning and direction, revenue modeling and growth opportunities. He developed and implemented the Prime Therapeutics strategy, the first full disclosure pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) fiduciary, which delivered an 800 percent growth increase.
Scott earned his Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern Law School and his bachelor’s degree in public relations from Mount Mercy University. He is licensed to practice law in California and Minnesota.
Scott loves the outdoors. He enjoys spending time at his lake home in northern Minnesota as often as he’s able to.