Articles and Blogs

NATIONAL AMA teams up with biotech incubator to connect physicians with startups Amazon Alexa is luring health developers, but it will be a while before we use it to call a doctor Telemedicine may be leading to the overprescribing of antibiotics HHS to audit plans for compliance with HIPAA transactions It’s a Brave New World…Read More

Summary On February 14, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (“CMMI”) launched a new five-year payment model for emergency ambulance services named the Emergency Triage, Treat and Transport Model (“ET3”). ET3 will enable participating ambulance providers and suppliers (“Ambulance Providers”) to partner with qualified health…Read More

New Jersey’s Law Mirrors Michigan’s and That of Other States Must employers accommodate off-duty use of marijuana? A recent appellate decision in New Jersey serves as a warning to Michigan employers about that question and even raises the specter of having to accommodate positive drug tests for non-disabled employees and applicants. For health care employers…Read More

As more hospitals and hospital systems merge and consolidate, as well as focus their time and attention on providing more outpatient care, recent market trends suggest adaptive reuse projects will become increasingly relevant to health care providers. As a follow-up to a recent Hall Render article defining “adaptive reuse” and outlining the incentives and challenges associated…Read More

Congressional Leaders Discuss Health Care Priorities Congress’ top leaders, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), announced they are not embracing “Medicare for All” as a priority at the American Hospital Association’s annual Washington conference. Both leaders reinforced that each chamber will pursue largely separate health care agendas in the…Read More

NATIONAL Hospitals add 13,600 jobs in March Walmart increasingly comparing physicians over cost 10 CEOs reshaping healthcare: Forbes What the HIPAA-compliant Alexa skills mean for the future of voice in healthcare PBM group says HHS drug rebate proposal would increase costs more than predicted The Best Places to Work in Health Care and Biopharma CMMI’s…Read More

Health Cost Reduction Package Slated for Summer Release Speaking on the Senate floor on Thursday, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (“HELP”) Committee, said he plans to move a wide-ranging legislative package through his panel seeking to curb health care costs. Sen. Alexander, along with HELP ranking member Sen….Read More

It’s no April Fools’ joke. On April 1, 2019, the Health Resources & Services Administration Office of Pharmacy Affairs (“HRSA”) unveiled a long-awaited website that gives providers participating in the 340B drug pricing program (“340B Program”) direct access to information about the maximum amounts that pharmaceutical companies may charge for certain drugs. This moves the…Read More

NATIONAL Hospital associations urge appeals court to reverse ACA ruling ‘Patient Dumping’ Still a Problem Despite Law Hospitals are largest employers in 16 states CMS finalizes nontraditional MA benefits, use of encounter data Physician Compensation Plateaued in 2018, Falling Less than 1% Feds get pressure to upgrade, expand HIPAA transactions These are the best –…Read More

In a recent case out of Kansas, the Tenth Circuit reiterated the importance of the FCA’s materiality and scienter requirements that the Supreme Court set forth in Escobar: FCA claims must satisfy materiality and knowledge requirements—both of which are rigorous and strictly enforced. A whistleblower must prove knowledge in an implied certification case—it cannot be…Read More