Vanessa K. Burrows is an associate in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and is based in the Firm’s Washington, D.C., office. She focuses her practice on health care law, with an emphasis on medical device, food and drug, and pharmacy law. Her broad-based experience also includes HIPAA compliance, health privacy and security laws, and public health law. She advises health care entities and their contractors on compliance, regulatory, data-sharing, licensing, and enforcement matters.
Previously, Vanessa served as the HIPAA Privacy Officer for the City of Chicago and an attorney for the Chicago Department of Public Health. In that capacity, she advised the City’s covered entities and business associates, as well as the health department’s executive team. She provided guidance on emergency preparedness authorities and public health laws on communicable diseases, HIV/AIDS/STIs, scope of practice, mental health, tobacco, and quarantine and isolation.
Prior to joining the City of Chicago, Vanessa worked on Capitol Hill as a Legislative Attorney for the Congressional Research Service in Washington, DC, where she advised Members of Congress and their staff in the areas of health law, administrative law, and constitutional law. She addressed specific legal issues in legislation including the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA), the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (TCA), and the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act (FDAAA).
