Profile
Sheryl Tatar Dacso works with health care organizations, hospitals, and physicians on health care compliance, regulations, and transactions, including physician practice formation, mergers, acquisitions, and business ventures as well as digital health and telemedicine. A Texas Board Certified Health Care Lawyer with more than three decades of experience, her practice includes the representation of nonprofit organizations such as federally qualified health centers, rural health clinics, certified nonprofit health corporations, medical education foundations, and research organizations. She often advises on employer or retail-based clinics, joint ventures involving exempt and nonexempt organizations and addresses issues associated with health organization governance and regulatory compliance.
An AHLA-trained negotiator/mediator for resolution of health care disputes, Sheryl has handled many complex transactions involving health care organizations. In 2002, she was the first attorney named by Texas Lawyer as the No. 1 “Top Notch Lawyer” in health care law in Texas (ALM Media Properties, LLC). She is a frequent speaker on health care policy and has written several textbooks and articles on a broad range of health care topics ranging from managed care to virtual practice arrangements among physician practices and previously served on the editorial board of E-Health, Law and Policy, and has been a regular contributing author of a chapter in the BNA publication of E-Health, Privacy and Security Law (multiple editions).
Prior to the introduction of ACOs under health care reform, Sheryl worked with clients to establish managed care organizations such as IPAs, PHOs, and integrated delivery systems. Her managed care experience extends to payer/provider and direct to patient contracting arrangements as well as concierge medicine.
Capabilities
Experience
- Represented an organization acting on behalf of 132 physicians to obtain a new professional services contract for emergency care at a local hospital following immediate termination by the physicians’ prior staffing company.
- Represented a clinical research support company in its development of administrative services agreements with for-profit and nonprofit institutions.
- Assisted a California managed care organization in establishing an arrangement in Texas with primary care physicians to participate in Medicare Advantage plans.
- Represented mid-size ophthalmology practice in its acquisition by a private equity supported group.°
- Developed innovative models using the series PLLC a multispecialty group practice.°
- Restructured a Nephrology practice into multiple cells using the series PLLC and LLC model.°
- Consolidated 35 physicians into the largest GI practice in Houston and surrounding areas.°
- Consolidated 20 physicians into the largest urology practice in Houston and surrounding areas.°
- Consolidated 70+ physicians into one of the largest radiology practices in Houston and surrounding areas; then years later represented them again in a subsequent sale to a private equity sponsored company as its first acquisition of a radiology practice.°
- Developed an ACO that integrated two IPAs using care coordination capabilities to clinically integrate the participating providers.°
- Worked with a large employer to develop an on-site employer-based health care service delivery model as part of its self-funded employee benefits program using telemedicine technology and an affiliated medical practice structure.°
- Provided on-site assessment, developed policies, and procedures and restructured employer-based health clinic with a focus on meeting HIPAA and other health care regulatory compliance requirements in California.°
- Developed a comprehensive HIPAA and HITECH compliance strategy and program for a national fitness company for it to satisfy its duties as a business associate of a health care organization.°
- Developed expansion models for expanding access to health care services for a federally qualified health clinic.°
- Developed structure for one of the first retail clinics to engage in delivery of nurse practitioner delivered primary care services in association with large health care systems.°
- Developed innovative models for affiliating and leveraging status of federally qualified health centers for the purpose of reducing cost, enhancing efficiencies, and increasing access to care by underserved populations.°
- Participated in the development of a guide to HIPAA pre-emption under Texas law for the Texas Hospital Association and Texas Medical Association; development of a compliance CD tool that is specific to Texas law and HIPAA Compliance.°
- Provided antitrust compliance analysis and structured a merger of two physician-hospital organizations associated with a nonprofit, tax-exempt health system.°
- Drafted legislation, lobbied, developed, implemented and advised a quasi-governmental rural-focused health care system, including legislative drafting and technical assistance to state agencies involved with regulating insurance and Medicaid/CHIP in Texas.°
°Except for the first three matters, the above representations were handled by Ms. Dacso prior to her joining Greenberg Traurig, LLP.
- Sr. Vice President, General Counsel, Providence Hospital, Mobile, AL., 1982-1986
- Associate Counsel, Sisters of Charity (now Ascension Health), Houston, TX, 1982
- Voluntary Faculty, Rice University School of Business and Health Care, Executives Program jointly sponsored by Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, 1997-1999
- Adjunct Faculty, University of Houston Law Center, Institute of Health Law and Policy, Houston, Texas, 1993-1999
- Adjunct Faculty, College of Technology, University of Houston, Clinical Research Course, 2006-2012
- Adjunct Associate Professor, San Diego State University Graduate School of Public Health, San Diego, California, 1988-1994
- McGovern Fellow, Ethics and Medicine, University of Texas Medical School, Houston, 2010
- Lecturer, University of Texas Health Science Center, McGovern Medical School, Transition to Practice, 2010-2019
- Professor, University of Texas Health Science Center School of Public Health, 2021-Present
- Adjunct Faculty, Texas A&M Law School, 2022-Present
- Guest Lecturer, Texas Tech Health Science Center School of Medicine, Center for Ethics, Humanities and Spirituality, 2015-Present
- Lean/Six Sigma Greenbelt Certification
- Board Certified, Health Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2005-Present
- Registered Lobbyist, State of Texas, 1995-2005
- Mediation Training Certification, American Health Lawyers Association, Dispute Resolution Committee, 2000
- Certified Healthcare Compliance, Health Care Compliance Association, 2006
- Harvard Program on Negotiation for Senior Executives, June 1993
- Mediation Training and Certification, Center for Life Studies, Houston, Texas, October 1993
Recognition & Leadership
- Listed, The Best Lawyers in America, Health Care Law, 2010-2025
- Houston Lawyer of the Year, Health Care Law, 2022
- Listed, Chambers USA Guide, 2016-2024
- Listed, The Legal 500 United States, Health Care Law, 2015-2017
- Listed, Super Lawyers magazine, Texas Super Lawyers, 2017-2022
- Rated, AV Preeminent® 5.0 out of 5.0
- Board of Directors, San Diego Hospice Corporation, 1988-1992
- Member, American Bar Association, 1979-Present
- Member, Health Law Section, 1981-Present
- Member, Science and Technology Section, 2019-Present
- Member, Senior Lawyer Division, 2022-Present
- Member, American Health Lawyers Association, 1982-Present
- Member, California Society of Hospital & Healthcare Attorneys, 1986-Present
- Member, State Bar of Texas, 1979-Present
- Member, Health Law Section, 2008-Present
- Member, Houston Bar Association, 1979-Present
- Member, Health Law Section, 2010-Present
- Charter Member, Health Law Advisory Commission to the State Bar of Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2002-2005
- Advisory Board, SMU Cox School of Business, Women on the Move Executive Program, 2009-2011
- Advisory Board, Center for Houston’s Future; Member, Scenario Planning Workgroup, 2009-2010
- Member, Integration Committee and Public Health Task Force, Greater Houston Partnership, 2004-2005
- Board of Directors, Texas Institute of Health Policy Research, 1999-2002
- United Way of Houston, Public Policy Committee, 1994-2001
- Health Access Texas,
- Board of Directors, 1996-2007
- Planning Committee, 1995-2007
- Board Member, Partnership for Connected Illinois, 2024-Present
- Member, Health Care Compliance Association, 2005-Present
- Member, Ibn Sina Foundation Advisory Board, 2012-Present
- Member, Board of Directors, Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, 2014-2020
- Member, Board of Directors, Clinical Health Network for Transformation (PPFA affiliate), 2020-2022
- Member, Indian American Cancer Association Network, Advisory Board, 2022-Present
- Member, Illinois Telehealth Initiative, Program Planning Committee, 2017-Present
- Member, Program Planning Committee for the U.T. Health Law Conference, 2000-Present
- US Exchange Fellow to Hungary and the Czech Republic; EISENHOWER FOUNDATION, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1999
Credentials
- DrPH, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- J.D., South Texas College of Law
- M.P.H., University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- B.A., University of Texas
- California
- Texas