General Counsel
Robert A. Pelaia
Senior Associate General Counsel - Health Affairs Jacksonville
Robert A. Pelaia provides a wide range of legal support services for the Jacksonville campus of the University of Florida College of Medicine in numerous areas including health care fraud and abuse, academic medicine, employment/education law, the structuring of contractual relationships and the delivery of health care services. Mr. Pelaia also functions as the Director of Compliance for the College of Medicine program in Jacksonville. As the Director of Compliance, he formulates and reviews policies to guide the billing, coding and documentation of professional fees and advises on federal and state health regulatory laws and regulations.
Mr. Pelaia is certified as a Health Care Law Specialist by the Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education. He also is certified as a Professional Coder by the American Academy of Professional Coders. Mr. Pelaia currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Health Law at Florida Coastal School of Law. He has written numerous articles and is a frequent regional and national speaker on issues related to healthcare fraud and abuse and compliance. He has spoken at seminars sponsored by the American Health Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association, Medicare Compliance Alert, the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Academy of Professional Coders.
Prior to joining the Office of Vice President and General Counsel, Mr. Pelaia was associated with the Washington, D.C. office of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky & Popeo, P.C. where he represented health care providers on an array of health regulatory matters. Mr. Pelaia began his legal practice with the health law firm of Epstein, Becker & Green, P.C., where he specialized in legal and regulatory matters arising under Medicare, Medicaid and other third party payment programs. In addition, he provided legal counseling in the areas of federal and state fraud matters, including issues of anti-kickback, self-referral and false claims.
Mr. Pelaia received his juris doctor from Seton Hall University School of Law with a concentration in health law and policy. While in law school, Mr. Pelaia completed a legal internship with the Legal/Risk Management Department of a New Jersey hospital system. He received his bachelor of arts degree, with honors, from the State University of New York at New Paltz with a double major in French and International Communications. While completing his undergraduate studies, Mr. Pelaia attended the Sorbonne in Paris, France.
He is a member of the American Health Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the National Association of College and University Attorneys, the Health Care Compliance Association and the American Academy of Professional Coders.
Mr. Pelaia joined the University of Florida Office of the Vice President and General Counsel in 1998 and is admitted to practice in Florida, the District of Columbia and New Jersey.