Articles and Blogs

The NLRB’s rule requiring private sector employers to post a “Notice of Employee Rights” took another hit from another federal appeals court.  The rule that was scheduled to go into effect early in 2012 was enjoined by lower federal courts last year and was ultimately struck down by a decision of a federal appeals court…Read More

Delayed Debt Ceiling Could Affect Provider Payment Bill The Congressional Budget Office (“CBO”) released their June report showing the government should be able to stay under the debt ceiling until October or November of this year. Many inside health circles believe that Congress will feel less pressure to fix the Sustainable Growth Rate (“SGR”) formula,…Read More

On July 1, 2013, House Bill 1135 takes effect.  The bill amends several current statutes and creates Ind.Code §25-23.4-1 et seq. for certified direct entry midwives (“CDEM”).  The new law includes the following provisions that could potentially affect hospitals and claims involving CDEM. Amendments to existing statutes include: IC §16-37-2-9 is amended to require additional…Read More

Discharge for Lactation Is Sex Discrimination In a recent decision, a federal appeals court held that a termination for “lactating or expressing milk” is sex discrimination under Title VII because it would clearly impose upon women “a burden that male employees need not – indeed, could not – suffer.”  The Court also ruled that lactation…Read More

The National Labor Relations Board has, for at least the past two years, been focusing on private employer policies that interfere with employee rights to engage in protected concerted activity for their mutual aid and protection.  Employer policies that prohibit talking about wages, hours and working conditions while at or away from work have been…Read More

It’s long been a crime or at least a misdemeanor for someone to threaten or intimidate another person.  Recently, some prosecutions for intimidation were dismissed by the courts because of the way Indiana’s intimidation statute was written.  For instance, it wasn’t clear that threats made electronically were prohibited.  Also, it wasn’t clear that intimidation covered…Read More

Originally due last Fall, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) has published the Quality Assessment and Performance Improvement (“QAPI”) Provider Toolkit and Provider Resources for skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”).  These items have been published on a new CMS website dedicated to helping SNFs develop and implement a QAPI program, as required by the…Read More

Executive Summary On May 17, 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published Change Request 8219 (Transmittal 465) (“CR 8219”) announcing new guidance on the use of rubber stamp signatures. For medical review purposes, Medicare requires providers to authenticate services provided or ordered with a handwritten or electronic signature. Currently, CMS does not…Read More

Paul Ryan Tells Hall Render Congress “Ready” to Reform SGR, but Questions Remain On Monday, House Budget Committee Chairman and Ways and Means Committee member Paul Ryan (R-WI) told John Williams, the head of Hall Render’s federal advocacy practice area, that Congress is “ready” to permanently reform the Sustainable Growth Rate (“SGR”) formula.  “We’re ready to…Read More

Adverse Inference from Deleted Evidence Litigation happens.  When it does, and sometimes even before it does, you need to be aware that, unless you take steps to preserve discoverable or relevant evidence such as emails, memos or data banks, a jury might be instructed by the court to assume that the deleted evidence was harmful…Read More