One Year at the Crossroads of Women’s Health and Technology

  Return to Women's Initiative

Mintz’s Women’s Health and Technology offering marks its first year as an official practice. Despite having launched the practice in 2023, the firm has been servicing clients in this space for several years.

FemTech Founders

Joanne Hawana

Ellen Janos

Melanie Levy

Karen Lovitch

This initiative integrates attorneys with deep capabilities in corporate, intellectual property, health care/FDA regulatory, and litigation matters. With decades of experience in the life sciences, the multidisciplinary team offers innovative legal advice, attuned to the specific needs and challenges in women’s health and technology.

One year in, and the practice continues to expand at a steady pace.

Formed by Members Joanne Hawana, Ellen Janos, Melanie Levy, and Karen Lovitch (Chair, Health Law Practice & Co-Chair, Health Care Enforcement Defense Practice), the practice serves several companies at the intersection of women’s health and technology, an expansive area often referred to as “FemTech.”

Along with the important pro bono work that the group is doing with Lawyers For Good Government, the team has led the following matters in the last year:

 
Assisting Navigate Maternity, a women-owned start-up providing a mobile, pregnancy-monitoring and support platform.
 
Advising Bexa, an innovative breast imaging device company that contracts with employers to provide convenient breast exams in the workplace utilizing a small, handheld apparatus, on its HIPAA obligations as well as general health care regulatory advice.
 
Counseling Hey Jane, a start-up provider of telehealth-based abortion care services, on legal and compliance issues related to medication and care access following the Dobbs decision.
 
Providing regulatory advice to Seven Starling, a telehealth-based behavioral health service for women through every stage of motherhood, which assists patients who are dealing with anxiety, depression, or trauma related to fertility challenges, pregnancy, pregnancy loss and miscarriage, abortion, postpartum-related disorders, and early parenthood. Mintz also assisted Seven Starling as it expanded to provide additional services.

Each founding member brings a wealth of experience in her respective field: Ellen in telehealth and telemedicine, Joanne in ensuring FDA marketing compliance, Karen in reimbursement and general health care regulatory issues, and Melanie in assisting companies with fundraising. In fact, the launch of the practice was highlighted in Law360.

In the article, Melanie commented, “We really wanted to take a stand and go on record and say there is an opportunity here that people are missing to help better the lives of women. And to our clients, we wanted to say we are interested in helping you fight this battle as well, because at the end of the day, as women, we want to see better health care for women, and we want to see better access for women.”

Ellen added, “Mintz has been entrenched in the women’s health and technology industries for so many years that it made sense for us to collaborate as those two industries began to intersect.”

Focusing on areas like fertility, pregnancy, menstrual health, sexual health, postnatal care, and implantables, FemTech has enhanced health care access for women and those identifying as women. The practice works with health care providers, life science companies, and biotech developers, reflecting Mintz’s longstanding commitment to women’s health and technology sectors. A year since the practice’s inception, the Mintz team continues to champion these causes, leveraging their deep-rooted experience and collaborative approach to drive advancements in women’s health.