Articles and Blogs

On May 24, 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services, through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, issued Guidance Regarding Patient Safety Work Product and Providers’ External Obligation (the “Guidance”). Since the enactment of the Patient Safety Act1 and its implementing regulation, the Patient Safety Rule2, there has been some confusion among patient…Read More

Senate Finance Committee Releases White Paper on the Stark Law Reform On June 30, the Senate Finance Committee released a 19-page white paper examining potential reforms to the Stark Law. The white paper follows a discussion held in December 2015 by Republican majority members of Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees in which Hall…Read More

Senate Finance Committee Releases White Paper on the Stark Law Reform On June 30, the Senate Finance Committee released a 19-page white paper examining potential reforms to the Stark Law. The white paper follows a discussion held in December 2015 by Republican majority members of Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees in which Hall…Read More

In November 2015, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 went into effect. One aspect of that act was the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015. The new law required that the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act and the False Claims Act (“FCA”) penalties be “corrected” to adjust for inflation since their…Read More

On June 7, 2016, a bill expanding the scope of practice for certified nurse anesthetists (“NAs”) was introduced to the Michigan Senate by Sen. Mike Kowall (R-White Lake). Senate Bill 1019 would amend sections 17210 & 17708 of the Public Health Code (the “Code”). Specifically, the bill would:  Include certain anesthesia and analgesia services in an…Read More

Back in April, Hall Render reported that the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its so-called “Persuader Rule.” The DOL’s new rule has generated a heated outcry from employer groups and attorneys. Litigation followed and, on June 27, 2016, a federal district court in Texas issued a temporary nationwide injunction, preventing the DOL from enforcing the new…Read More

CMS Releases Medicare Trustee Report On June 22, CMS released its annual Medicare Trustees Report that projects the long-term finances of the Hospital Insurance and Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds. The report estimates that Medicare’s hospital trust fund will run out of money in 2028, two years earlier than the panel’s 2015 report stated. Medicare’s trust…Read More

Wisconsin’s long-standing hospital regulation, DHS 124, will be significantly reformed beginning on July 1, 2016. DHS 124, described in the governor’s 2013 Regulatory Review Report as “outdated, duplicative, and confusing for health care operators,” has been the focus of regulatory reform efforts for more than a decade. Signed into law on April 8, 2014, the…Read More

On June 8, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) announced its plan to implement a three-year Medicare pre-claim review demonstration for home health services in the states of Illinois, Florida, Texas, Michigan and Massachusetts (the “Demonstration”). These states were selected based on high incidences of fraud and improper payments for home health services….Read More

Recently, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) released the FY 2015 Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program Annual Report (“Annual Report”). The Annual Report details the enforcement actions and the monetary gains from efforts by the OIG and DOJ to fight…Read More