Articles and Blogs

On Tuesday May 9, 2023, the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), jointly with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (“SAMHSA”), announced that it will publish a rule to temporarily extend current telemedicine flexibilities for prescribing controlled substances beyond the termination of the Federal Public Health Emergency (“PHE”), which will occur on May 11,... READ MORE

On May 2, 2023, the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld the reversal of a trial court order compelling a hospital to administer Ivermectin to a patient suffering from COVID-19. In what had the potential to be a knock-out case addressing appropriate standards of care, patient rights and doctor shopping, the Supreme Court instead affirmed the... READ MORE

NATIONAL 2022 False Claims Act recoveries lowest in 14 years: 5 things to know AHA to CMS: Medicare DSH payment proposal could devastate access to care Bipartisan bill revives efforts to expand FTC oversight to nonprofit hospitals Bright Health to exit health insurance business ChatGPT May Not be Ready to Revolutionize the Healthcare Industry... READ MORE

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. The Kaiser Family Foundation recently surveyed Americans on the state of their mental health. 90% of adults believe we are facing a mental health crisis. 80% of adults believe the cost of mental health care is a “big problem” for Americans. 51% of adults have a family member... READ MORE

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that a school district acted lawfully when it withdrew a teacher’s requested religious accommodation to call students by their last names instead of using transgender students’ preferred names or pronouns. The Court opined that the accommodation caused harm to transgender students, other students, and the educational... READ MORE

The Indiana General Assembly recently passed Senate Enrolled Act 7 (“SEA 7”), which will further restrict the enforceability of non-compete agreements between health care employers and their physician employees. After Governor Holcomb’s expected signature, SEA 7 will go into effect on July 1, 2023. This is not the first time the Indiana legislature has... READ MORE

On May 1, 2023, the Quality, Safety & Oversight Group at CMS issued a memorandum entitled “Guidance for the Expiration of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE)” (the “CMS Memo”) which announced that certain regulations or other policies included in the Interim Final Rules during the public health emergency (“PHE”) will be modified with the... READ MORE

As the COVID-19 pandemic took its toll, the year 2020 ushered in declarations of a National Emergency (“NE”) and a Public Health Emergency (“PHE”). The PHE is set to expire on May 11, 2023. In addition, H.J. Res. 7 was signed by President Biden on April 10, which ends the NE on May 11,... READ MORE

NATIONAL 16 bills in healthcare package, but little to show for nursing homes AHA discusses legislative proposals on site-neutral, 340B and other issues at House subcommittee hearing AHA: Financial Challenges Continue as Hospital Expenses Rise AHA: Supply chain won’t return to ‘normal’ anytime soon, but here’s what you can do American Hospital Association wants... READ MORE

Kaiser Permanente has agreed to acquire PA-based Geisinger Health System. The combination, which still must pass federal and state regulatory scrutiny, would have more than $100B in revenue. Commercial landlords are contending simultaneously with a cyclical market downturn and reduced demand for office and retail space. The recent surge in interest rates has caused... READ MORE