A leader inside and outside the firm, Venable partner Ari Markenson co-leads Venable's Healthcare Industry Group, serves in leadership roles for various professional organizations in the healthcare industry, and serves on Law360's Health Care Editorial Board. He also teaches as an adjunct professor at numerous New York universities, including Columbia Law School, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and Pace University and the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University.
In recognition of Ari's contributions to his community, Crain's New York Business recently named him to its selective list of notable leaders in healthcare. In this Q&A, Ari discussed his career path and what drives him to get involved.
Q: Did you always want to be an attorney? And why did you choose the healthcare industry as your focus?
Ari: I grew up across the street from a world-class health system and orthopedic hospital where my parents worked, so I knew I was going to do something in healthcare. Law and policy was the path I chose to do that. I went to law school knowing that I wanted to take my law degree and do something in the healthcare industry. I later got a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree, which added to my understanding of the business and policy of healthcare, and I've found it integral to advancing my ability to understand client interests, goals, and challenges. I went from law school directly to get my master's, and when I finished that, I looked for opportunities in the healthcare industry.
Q: You are involved with a lot of professional healthcare organizations. What kinds of opportunities have presented themselves as a result of these efforts?
Ari: Through the New York State Bar Association's Health Law Section, where I'm a former chair, I've met healthcare lawyers who are just good people. It's a unique group of lawyers who support each other and care deeply about what their clients are doing, recognizing that healthcare isn't just a business-it affects individual lives daily. Section members helped me a ton when I was younger, providing mentoring opportunities and assistance, and now I've gotten to a point where I get to give it all back to the next generation. It's been great to be involved in it for that, and to lead those organizations to make sure they continue to support younger lawyers.
I have also been involved in the American Health Law Association (AHLA) for my entire career, and I have served on the board since June 2020. It is the gold standard for health law professionals, and I'd say that 85% or more of my professional colleagues in health law are members, and I met most of those folks through AHLA over the years.
Plus, by being involved in AHLA, I'm able to help clients who need an attorney in, say, Kansas, or somewhere else where we can't otherwise help. AHLA has enabled me to address a client's need by saying I can't do that in Kansas, but I know who can.
I've also had the opportunity to write several books published by the American Bar Association (ABA) Health Law Section, and edit and write books for AHLA and more recently serve as editor in chief of AHLA's 2024 Health Care Law and Policy Acronyms and Terms, a book that explains the mass of acronyms and terminology we have in healthcare.
Q: What inspired you to create that guide?
Ari: When I started my MPH program, they handed out a packet of terms and said to everybody, basically, if you folks graduate and don't know the terms that are in here, we did something wrong. I lost that packet a very long time ago, but for years I've thought to myself that there are tons of publications explaining medical terminology, but there is nothing focused specifically on the acronym soup in health law and policy. So, I decided a bunch of years ago, what the heck? Let's do it.
Q: You also teach health policy and health management courses at several universities; how does that complement your law practice?
Ari: I have been teaching health law, policy, and management courses for almost as long as I have been practicing law. I really enjoy sharing what I know, like how health lawyers practice or what healthcare managers think about policy-thus my involvement in academia. I teach JD, master's, and doctoral courses; it's just a natural extension of my interest in giving back to the next generation. And it forces me to stay on top of what is going on in healthcare.
Q: How has Venable been a helpful platform for growing your practice?
Ari: I've always felt like we have the benefit of a large, national full-service law firm with the feel and culture of a small boutique practice. You can walk the halls of any of our offices and get the feeling that Venable is a place where people like to work together. Our lawyers collaborate to find ways to comprehensively meet the needs of a client or work with potential clients to give them a sense of what we can do to help them succeed. Venable is a place where we want to understand our clients' priorities, goals, and future needs and help them achieve success. Even if it isn't in their own practice area, our colleagues make every effort to bring together our capabilities to ensure we are invested properly in our clients' interests.
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