Articles and Blogs

Hospitals and other health care providers may be liable for fraudulent use of credit cards at their facilities effective October 1, 2015 if they do not upgrade their credit card terminals. The major credit card issuers have been busy issuing to all cardholders new chip-enabled credit cards (“EMV Cards”) to address the growing concern with data…Read More

In a highly anticipated decision, the NLRB has restated and redefined the standard for determining when employers will be found to be joint employers for purposes of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”).  The NLRA governs labor management relations in the private sector.  This three-to-two decision applies long-established principles to find that two or more…Read More

On August 20, 2015, in Nobach v. Woodland Village Nursing Center, Inc., the Fifth Circuit held that terminating an employee for a refusal to pray the Rosary does not violate Title VII when there is no evidence that the employer was aware of the employee’s conflicting religious beliefs. In light of this determination, the court…Read More

On August 27, 2015, the Health Resources and Services Administration (“HRSA”) released a notice of proposed 340B Drug Pricing Program Omnibus Guidance.  This notice (a copy of which can be found here) proposes to establish long-awaited and significant guidance for covered entities enrolled in, and drug manufacturers participating in, the 340B Program.  Once finalized after…Read More

Background On August 13, 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) issued a Memorandum Report (the “Report”) that examined the overlap between physician-owned hospitals (“POHs”) and physician-owned distributors (“PODs”) of spinal devices. PODs are medical device distributors whose owners are often physicians that use the devices sold by the…Read More

On August 21, 2015, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (the “Court”) issued a ruling in Home Care Association of America v. David Weil, also known as the “companionship services lawsuit.” Unfortunately, it is more bad news for the home care industry. The Court ruled that the Department of Labor (“DOL”) has the authority…Read More

On August 21, 2015, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (the “Court”) issued a ruling in Home Care Association of America v. David Weil, also known as the “companionship services lawsuit.” Unfortunately, it is more bad news for the home care industry. The Court ruled that the Department of Labor (“DOL”) has the…Read More

The American Hospital Association (“AHA”) released a “homestretch” checklist to help hospitals verify that they are ready for the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10.  The AHA recommends checking internal systems, verifying external partner readiness and consideration of financial protections.  This includes verification that their software applications have been appropriately updated to accommodate the transition.  The checklist…Read More

In a judicial opinion certain to rock the provider world, Judge Edgardo Ramos of the Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York denied a New York Health System’s (“Health System”) motion to dismiss the U.S.’s and New York State’s complaints in intervention under the federal False Claims Act (“FCA”) and state counterpart,…Read More

Executive Summary Earlier this year, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced significant changes to Medicare by setting quantitative goals for its value-based payment programs. This payment reform is not only accelerating the shift away from fee-for-service toward a value-based system but also driving fundamental changes in how care is delivered. Health care…Read More