DLA Piper

Tailored solutions to healthtech challenges

Implementing healthcare technologies requires practical experience and bold thinking. We understand the healthtech environment, its nuances and its complexities. And we have deep knowledge of how healthcare and therapeutic goods regulations impact tech-enabled products and services. We bring life sciences and technology lawyers together into one Healthtech practice; you get sound, integrated advice.

Healthtech is now a powerful tool in patient diagnosis, treatment and management. Since COVID-19, telehealth solutions and remote healthcare have been widely adopted.

Healthtech is any tech-enabled healthcare product or service that engages consumers or patients to optimise their lifestyle, wellness and health; that captures, stores or transmits health data; or that supports operations in healthcare organisations.

These products and services can include digital healthcare, telehealth, or software as a medical device.

“Our lawyers are thought leaders in healthtech laws and compliance risks and routinely partner with industry associations to advise on policies.”

Whether you're a healthtech startup, big pharma or a traditional tech company, we advise all players in the healthtech ecosystem and at all stages of the product or service lifecycle.

You may be optimising R&D or improving screening and diagnosis with AI. You may be enhancing care delivery with telehealth or digital pharmacies, or supporting health and wellness with disease prevention wearables. Or you may improving clinical management with digital therapies, and increasing operational efficiency.

Whatever your objective, our industry knowledge and experience will help you succeed.

We can help you on larger projects or day-to-day business operations. This includes IP, regulatory and compliance, data privacy and cybersecurity, commercial contracts, M&A funding, and tax. We can also support you on your international expansion, with full-service legal advice to simplify your market entry in each new jurisdiction.

Our lawyers are thought leaders in the legal aspects of healthtech, including regulation and compliance. We routinely partner with industry associations to advise on policies – for example, we've advised the UK government on its plans for the regulation of AI in the UK. And with Duke Health, Mayo Clinic, UC Berkeley and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, we set up the Health AI Partnership to standardise industry best practices on using AI software.

Awards and recognition

Experience

We established the Health AI Partnership, together with Duke Health, Mayo Clinic, UC Berkeley, and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, to standardise industry best practices on leveraging AI software (“medical AI”) and distribute key insights and guidance in the form of an open-source curriculum. The Health AI Partnership plans to engage various delivery systems and stakeholders to collect and synthesise the industry’s use of medical AI during a 12-month project. The group will build upon capabilities that currently exist across delivery systems to procure and manage therapeutics, laboratory diagnostics, and other medical devices.

We have advised:

A global pharmaceutical company on its “digital garage” programme for identifying and investing in early-stage AI projects and tech-driven programmes
A major digital health consultancy on designing technical specifications, liability and risk mitigations, product and user guides, and other materials for medical AI application
Several pharmaceutical manufacturers on facilitating telemedicine encounters with an independent telemedicine service with respect to specific disease states
A major pharmaceutical company regarding the potential acquisition of a digital health company offering a Bluetooth-enabled sensor device that monitors inhaler usage and a related patient-facing mobile application
A global medical device manufacturer on its acquisition of a digital health company focused on respiratory care and management using a connected health platform offering sensor trackers, patient-facing application, and a provider portal
A major pharmaceutical company on the negotiation of a SaaS Agreement relating to a supply chain intelligence platform (warehouse management, supply chain track and trace, tracking of products from creation/origin to delivery at destination) and a contract relating to its installation and configuration
One of the world’s largest electronic companies on IP, regulatory and privacy matters related to medical devices that transfer health data from patient to physician
A global medical device manufacturer on its partnership with a digital health company offering a sleep training platform
A startup health technology company offering a wearable heart arrythmia detection and recording patch on its services arrangement with a telecardiology company to perform remote ECG interpretations