Articles and Blogs

For nearly 30 years, Palm Valley Cinema provided the community of Goodyear, Arizona with the biggest, newest Hollywood movie releases, from Saving Private Ryan to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, until it closed in 2016. However, new plans for the cinema will be focused on saving patients rather than providing a source of... READ MORE

On March 8, 2019, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) published a revised Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status, which is used to change or extend the status of a variety of nonimmigrants in the U.S., including H-4 dependents of H-1B workers. As of March 22, 2019, USCIS will only accept the revised version... READ MORE

NATIONAL How Haven’s hires hint at the healthcare organization’s larger ambitions Medicaid work requirements could cost hospitals $3.7B Outpatient joint replacements at ASCs cost 40% less than hospital-based surgery: 3 study details Apple’s groundbreaking heart study signals a new era of medicine, and doctors are debating the results What’s to keep Amazon from competing... READ MORE

The #MeToo Movement Focuses Attention on Mandatory Arbitration Agreements The #MeToo movement brought attention to the use of private arbitration for claims of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the workplace because employers benefit from the sometimes reduced costs of arbitration by not having to air those disputes in public and before juries of... READ MORE

Presidential Budget for 2020 Proposes Major Health Care Cuts President Trump released his administration’s fiscal year 2020 budget this week. While this proposal stands little chance of being implemented in its entirety, it is a good indicator of where the administration’s priorities stand for the next year, and some of the provisions, especially those... READ MORE

NATIONAL Judy Faulkner asked the press to dig into physician burnout and EHR satisfaction. So we did Nearly all hospital leaders say supply chain optimization improves margins, survey shows Amazon to close pop-ups as its healthcare venture site debuts Report: FDA hiding millions of adverse event reports from docs, public Critical condition: The crisis... READ MORE

On March 5, 2019, the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality/Survey & Certification Group released a memorandum titled “April 2019 Improvements to Nursing Home Compare and the Five-Star Rating System” (“Memorandum”). In the Memorandum, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) announced the end of the freeze on health inspection star ratings and added quality... READ MORE

Congress Tackles Health-Related Issues in Multiple Hearings This Week Congress looked at many health policy issues in a week jam-packed with hearings. Continuing Congress’s probe into drug pricing, the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee held a hearing on promoting competition to lower Medicare prescription drug costs. While lawmakers questioned whether the drug industry... READ MORE

NATIONAL How 6 major health systems and hospitals hope to boost housing Medicare trims payments to 800 hospitals, citing patient safety incidents CHIME to Congress: HIPAA isn’t enough to ensure cybersecurity Breast cancer screening bundled payment model incentivizes cost savings Value-based care shift among highlights of MGMA 19 financial conference Freestanding EDs charge up... READ MORE

The controversial Obama-era EEO-1 pay data disclosure requirements that had been indefinitely stayed by the White House Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) were reinstated earlier this week by a federal district court judge. This unhappy news for employers arrives less than three months before the May 31, 2019 EEO-1 filing deadline. The case... READ MORE