Articles and Blogs

On February 3, 2017, President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum addressing the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) so-called fiduciary rule that will go into effect on April 10, 2017.  Early media reports on February 2 and 3 indicated that the president would delay or suspend the rule. However, he did neither. The presidential memorandum directs the…Read More

On January 3, 2017, Michigan Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley signed Senate Bills 1015 and 1016 (collectively, the “Act”), which require applied behavior analysts to be licensed similarly to other professionals in the medical field. In an analysis of the Act, the Michigan Senate Fiscal Agency reasoned that early intervention using evidence-based treatment has shown to…Read More

On January 17, 2017, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2017-13 (“Rev. Proc. 17-13”) regarding private business use safe harbors for management and service contracts that affect assets financed with tax-exempt bond proceeds. Rev. Proc. 17-13 modifies, amplifies and supersedes safe harbors Revenue Procedure 2016-44 (“Rev. Proc. 16-44”), which we discussed here, and which in turn had replaced…Read More

The opioid epidemic has garnered widespread attention and action both nationally and at the state level. The Wisconsin Legislature, Governor and administrative agencies continue to take actions to address the significant challenges of opioid overdose, misuse and abuse in Wisconsin. A number of the state initiatives aimed at combating these problems focus on the practices…Read More

Review of the New Home Health Conditions of Participation – Emergency Preparedness, Organization and Administration of Services, Personnel Qualifications and Clinical Records. This is the sixth article in a series discussing CMS’s Final Revised Home Health Conditions of Participation (“Final CoPs”). With the release of the Final CoPs, CMS is finalizing the significant changes they proposed…Read More

Republicans Signal Slower Pace for ACA Repeal While Replacement Package Still Unclear Republicans on Capitol Hill signaled this week that repeal of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) may not happen as fast as they promised, and reports indicate they are no closer to consensus on a replacement package. After a contentious retreat in Philadelphia last…Read More

The courts appear to be walking back their trend toward loosening False Claims Act (“FCA”) pleading requirements. The FCA is a fraud statute, and lawsuits alleging FCA violations must be pled under Rule 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: Fraud or Mistake; Conditions of Mind. In alleging fraud or mistake, a party must state with…Read More

The False Claims Act¹ is a fraud statute; therefore, False Claims Act complaints must be pled with particularity,² identifying “the who, what, when, where, and how of an actual false claim” submitted to the government.³ Whistleblowers without evidence of specific claims have tried to circumvent the rule with statistics, showing a likelihood that false claims…Read More

Review of the New Home Health Conditions of Participation – Patient Rights (part 2). This is the fifth article in a series discussing CMS’s Final Revised Home Health Conditions of Participation (“Final CoPs”). With the release of the Final CoPs, CMS is finalizing the significant changes they proposed to make to the home health CoPs…Read More

On Monday, January 30, 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (“HRSA”) withdrew its 340B Program Omnibus Guidance, also referred to as the “Mega-Guidance.” The guidance would have addressed questions and provided clarifications for enrolled covered entities, drug manufacturers and contract pharmacies participating in the 340B Program. The withdrawal…Read More