Stephanie D. Barnes

JD, PhD

Stephanie D. Barnes advises healthcare organizations and digital health companies on navigating the complex regulatory landscape while aligning legal strategy with business growth. She provides practical, forward-looking counsel on regulatory compliance, risk management, and emerging opportunities across the healthcare ecosystem. Stephanie’s career spans private practice at an international law firm, service as General Counsel of a health system, and in-house counsel at a medical school—giving her a comprehensive perspective on healthcare operations and strategy.

Her areas of expertise include digital health and telemedicine, virtual care management reimbursement, SaaS and technology transactions, healthcare fraud and abuse laws, MSO-PC structures and the corporate practice of medicine, and reimbursement strategy. She also advises on a broad range of corporate and transactional matters, including business formation, commercial contracting, corporate governance, and strategic planning related to business models, financing, and healthcare transactions. In addition, Stephanie serves as a strategic advisor to emerging and growth-stage digital health companies, supporting governance, regulatory strategy, and startup and early-stage financing.

Dr. Barnes earned her B.A. summa cum laude in English from Tougaloo College and her J.D. from Harvard Law School. She also received her doctorate in Organizational Leadership from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She is admitted to practice law in Georgia, Mississippi, and Texas. She is certified as a professional coach by Coaches Training Alliance.

Dr. Stephanie D. Barnes is also an internationally acclaimed speaker and an awarding winning author on leadership, gender equality, and women’s rights. She has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Personal Excellence Magazine, and the Huffington Post. Dr. Barnes has also presented a TEDx Talk, “What’s in a Name? How Leadership Discourse Perpetuates Gender Bias”. She is a frequent speaker on health equity and advocacy for black maternal health.