Articles and Blogs

On August 12, 2013, for the first time since August 21, 2003, the National Labor Relations Board has a full complement of five Senate-confirmed members. Four new members, all nominated by President Obama and confirmed last month by the U.S. Senate, have been sworn into office. NLRB Chairman Mark Gaston Pearce was also confirmed last…Read More

Social media is becoming more and more prevalent and diverse, and entities in the health care field are encountering new issues related to social media.  Health care entities should have in place current social media policies to ensure that employees understand their obligations when it comes to protecting proprietary and confidential information.

This article is Part III in a five-part series of articles discussing the recently published federal Physician Payment Sunshine Act (“Sunshine Act”). This article focuses on recent updates and resources provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) to assist in Sunshine Act compliance. The first article in the series provided an overview…Read More

Executive Summary On July 1, 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) posted Advisory Opinion 13-07, addressing a proposed arrangement whereby a medical products manufacturer would offer tiered rebates to customers on a combination of products, some of which are reimbursable under the Federal health care programs (“Proposed Arrangement”)….Read More

When this statement was made by an employee during an EEOC mediation the employer was shocked to say the least.  Shocked and shaken by the employee’s outburst, the employer fired the angry employee within the hour.  True to his word, the employee then filed a federal law suit for retaliation for participating in the EEOC’s proceeding.  Was…Read More

On August 2, 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued an update to the State Operations Manual (“SOM”) regarding the process for notification of a facility closure.  The updates to the SOM are the result of a final rule published in the Federal Register on March 19, 2013 and can be found…Read More

On July 11, 2013, the Wisconsin Supreme Court (“Court”) released its decision in Outagamie County v. Melanie L., reversing the decision of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals which affirmed the circuit court’s extension of an involuntary medication order.  The full text of the opinion can be found here. Procedural Posture The case involved review of…Read More

The Administrative Review Board (“ARB”) ruled on July 22, 2013 that Florida Hospital of Orlando (“Florida Hospital”) is a covered federal subcontractor subject to Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ (“OFCCP”) jurisdiction by virtue of its participation as a network provider under TRICARE.  The ruling comes nine months after the same panel of judges dismissed…Read More

One of the main admission requirements for a skilled stay in a skilled nursing facility (“SNF”) is a three-day qualifying stay in an inpatient hospital.  In response to a question discussed on a recent Open Door Forum, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released a memorandum discussing if a stay in a Department…Read More

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) has rated nursing facilities since 2009 for three areas of performance: Health Inspections, Staffing, and Quality Measures. From 2009 through 2011, more than 40% saw an improvement in overall rating, while only around 27% had a most recent rating that was lower than the first.