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Lawyer draws on experience as pharmacist |
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By Jamie Ziemer
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Tuesday, 06 February 2007 |
 | Not many people dream of becoming a pharmacist and lawyer as well as earning a master of business administration degree in one lifetime. But that’s the path Robert Mabee stumbled upon. His vast experience has led him to a career specializing in medical law and working as a pharmacist on the side. It also gives him a unique perspective on health-care issues.
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Mabee said health care is entering challenging times.
Some of the biggest issues are the cost of health insurance, waste abuse and health-care delivery.
“We will see more stand-alone clinics or doc-in-the-box clinics,” he said. “That’s going to be a trend in South Dakota.”
People’s perception of the cost of health insurance can lead to overuse, he said.
And Mabee is concerned about people born from 1977 to 1985 who are entering the work force and having to pay for baby boomers’ health insurance as well as their own.
“We have a significant number of young people who don’t have health insurance and a large number reaching Medicare age,” he said. “How do we strike the right balance?”
One might assume that someone with three professional degrees had planned it that way, but when Mabee first registered at South Dakota State University, he didn’t know what he wanted to do.
Mabee’s adviser pushed him to pursue a degree in pharmacy after he received an A in organic chemistry.
Mabee’s father never finished high school, and neither parent attended college, so Mabee’s graduation was an accomplishment.
His two brothers also followed medical paths. One brother, Lee, also holds a pharmacy degree and practices as a OB/GYN in Sioux Falls.
Nine months before graduating from college, Mabee married his wife, Susan. After graduation, he joined the Army and served at military hospitals.
After four years in the military, Mabee decided to return to South Dakota to attend law school.
“I had always wanted to go to law school,” he said.
He received his law and MBA degrees through a joint program at the University of South Dakota. By the time he graduated from law school, he had been married for 10 years and had a 2-year-old daughter.
All three degrees, even though very different, have served Mabee well.
“It kept me current with health-care and pharmacy issues,” he said. “That’s the main reason I did it.”
Mabee keeps his pharmacy license current and works 17 hours on the weekends at Walgreen’s.
The rest of his time is spent at his law firm where he specializes in medical law. He represents pharmacists, doctors and nurses before licensing boards and assists in the formation of medical groups and contracting of employees. He covers credentialing matters such as privileges at hospital and administrative hiring before boards.
His MBA also comes in handy with the banking side of his practice.
“A lot of what I do is with regulated industries,” he said. “I have an edge in those areas because of my background.”
Dr. John Oliphant, a plastic surgeon in Sioux Falls, has been an adviser to Mabee for five years.
“He asks me for advice, and he gives me advice. It’s sort of a mutual exchange,” Oliphant said.
Oliphant said Mabee’s experience in health care as a pharmacist and his brother being a doctor gives Mabee a leg up on other lawyers.
“He has an edge on a lot of attorneys because he has a basic understanding of medical issues,” Oliphant said.
Dr. Richard Howard, also a plastic and reconstructive surgeon in Sioux Falls, has been an adviser to Mabee and worked with him on setting up a multispeciality enterprise.
Mabee’s background gives him the needed perspective, Howard said.
“He has input from aspects that physicians don’t even think about, and there’s also the regulations and government rules and laws that affect how things are done,” Howard said. “After all, when you’re operating a clinic, it is a business.”
Howard said Mabee is a down-to-earth person and watches out for the little guy.
“He’s like David taking on Goliath. He’s always watching out for the person that is going to get rolled out by a big entity,” Howard said.
The Mabee File
Name: Robert L. Mabee
Age: 60
Hometown: Parker
Position: Lawyer
Background: Has worked as a lawyer since 1979; opened his own practice in 1987; works part-time as a pharmacist at Walgreen’s
Family: Wife, Susan; two daughters, Linda, 29, and Laura, 21
Interests and hobbies: Being involved in the YMCA, photography, mentoring and his children |