Articles and Blogs

On September 30, 2021, the Departments of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), Labor and Treasury and the Office of Personnel Management (collectively, the “Departments”) published the second interim final rule implementing certain provisions of the No Surprises Act (“Part II of the IFR”). Part II of the IFR addresses key aspects of the No... READ MORE

On September 30, 2021, the Departments of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), Labor, and Treasury and the Office of Personnel Management (collectively, the “Departments”) published the second interim final rule implementing certain provisions of the No Surprises Act (“Part II of the IFR”). Part II of the IFR addresses key aspects of the No... READ MORE

NATIONAL 4 potential pitfalls lie ahead for OSHA’s vaccine mandate, say experts A look at the most expensive hospital projects this year CEOs share their views on the ‘Great Resignation’: 5 takeaways CMS overpaid $636M to ASCs, HOPDs for neurostimulator implantation surgeries, audit finds CMS penalizes 2,499 hospitals for high readmissions Designing the post-Covid... READ MORE

The health care industry has experienced significant increases in cyber-attacks such as ransomware the past few years. One segment of the industry that may be impacted especially hard by these increased attacks is Critical Access Hospitals (“CAHs”). Due to the increasing number of cyber-attacks, insurance underwriting practices are shifting. Instead of virtually rubberstamping each application... READ MORE

NATIONAL 15 people in healthcare among Forbes’ 400 richest people in America 256 hospitals warned about violating CMS price transparency rule AMA recognizes 44 systems for clinician burnout efforts Healthcare has lost half a million workers since 2020 Hospitals have spent more than $3B getting PPE during pandemic Mayo, Kaiser rally 11 systems to... READ MORE

On October 7, 2021, five years after issuing initial draft guidance on its enforcement approach for hospitals and health system pharmacy compounding under section 503A of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the “Act”), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) released revised draft guidance (“Draft Guidance”) that provides increased flexibility to hospitals and health... READ MORE

The Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (“HRSA”) released multiple key Provider Relief Fund (“PRF”) updates over the past four weeks, which include opening a new application for additional PRF funding. The new funding application process and other updates are discussed in more detail below. Practical Takeaways The applications... READ MORE

On September 28, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced changes to its merger review process designed to increase the rigor of the review and “streamline” (in the FTC’s words) the interactions between the merging parties and the FTC. The announced changes will expand the potential topics covered during investigations, while also standardizing the... READ MORE

NATIONAL 18% of healthcare workers have quit jobs during pandemic: Morning Consult 90% of clinicians say patients would be offended to see what’s in their medical records ‘A total miscue’: Leaders react to the No Surprises Act CMS ‘getting pretty close’ to releasing details of COVID-19 vaccination mandate CMS unveils another surprise-billing rule: 12... READ MORE

NATIONAL 7 CMS updates to know A top F.D.A. official moved on Monday to take over the agency’s vaccines office. AHA to CMS: Ensure COVID-19 vaccine mandate is ‘feasible,’ ‘fair’ CDC director recommends boosters for healthcare workers, despite panel’s vote CMS reevaluating hospital outpatient pay rate cut exemptions CMS reviewing mid-build exception denials CMS’... READ MORE