Articles and Blogs

Novant Health acquired three hospitals in South Carolina from Tenet Healthcare for $2.4B, including Hilton Head Hospital, East Cooper Medical Center and Coastal Carolina Hospital. The next state considering Certificate of Need (CON) reform is Kentucky according to a recent Becker’s article. At least four bills have been introduced to change the CON law,... READ MORE

NATIONAL AHA, others urge Supreme Court to review challenge to HHS interpretation of DSH formula    AHA: Anti-hospital Group Misleads on Site-neutral Impact on Rural Access to Care AHA: New Error-Ridden 340B Study Misses the Mark Amazon to lay off hundreds in healthcare division At inaugural food-as-medicine summit, HHS announces partnerships to bolster the movement... READ MORE

The Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (“HSR Act”), as amended, requires all persons contemplating certain mergers or acquisitions that meet or exceed the jurisdictional thresholds (shown below) to file a premerger notification (an “HSR Filing”) with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) Premerger Notification Office and Department of Justice (“DOJ”) Antitrust Division and to... READ MORE

On January 18, 2024, the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Prescription Drug Promotion (“OPDP”) issued its first enforcement letter of the year. Last year, OPDP did not issue its first enforcement letter until July, as we discussed here, which makes us wonder whether we will see an increase in enforcement this year. As... READ MORE

Becker’s published a roundup of seven rehabilitation hospitals opening or expanding thus far in 2024, including projects in Florida, New Mexico, Tennessee, Missouri, Ohio, South Dakota and Massachusetts. One of the projects will have a unit dedicated to pediatric rehabilitation. American Healthcare REIT, Inc. announced its pending IPO. The REIT owns MOBs, senior housing,... READ MORE

NATIONAL Amazon Pharmacy, One Medical pilot program integrates medication consultations Bad news for FTC’s noncompete ban Cigna to sell Medicare business to HCSC for $3.3B CMS proposes Medicare Advantage rate cut CMS seeks input to strengthen Medicare Advantage data, transparency Healthcare CFOs explore M&A, automation and service line cuts in 2024 Hospital merger activity... READ MORE

On January 11, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued a Final Rule entitled “Safeguarding the Rights of Conscience as Protected by Federal Statutes” (the “2024 Final Rule”). The 2024 Final Rule, which will take effect on March 11, 2024, seeks to clarify the mechanisms... READ MORE

PWC released the results of its Global CEO Survey. A majority of CEOs are taking steps to reinvent their companies to address megatrends like technological change, change in customer preferences and government regulation. 18% of health care CEOs plan on reducing their headcount in 2024 based on the use of generative AI. The effects... READ MORE

NATIONAL 55% of rural hospitals don’t offer obstetric care: Report Academic health systems are scooping up hospitals AHA says Medicare payments to long-term care hospitals are inadequate AHA Warns Hospitals of IT Help Desk Social Engineering Scheme Amazon Pharmacy connects with One Medical Biden administration reinforces reproductive health obligations for payers, providers Cash bonuses... READ MORE

CMS introduced an updated Medicare Cost Report e-Filing system (“MCReF”) and related templates to allow Medicare Part A providers the ability to electronically file to their Medicare contractor supporting documentation in addition to their cost report for fiscal years ending on or after December 31, 2017. This allows the contractor to receive successful MCReF... READ MORE