Articles and Blogs

When the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (“ADAAA”) was implemented and the revised regulations took effect, employers began bracing for changes. We have actively monitored the much-publicized multi-million dollar settlements relating to disability claims and predicted that employee-friendly judicial decisions would follow suit. Yet, with the backlog of pre-ADAAA cases still working their way…Read More

Because flu season can begin as early as October, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”), employers are already beginning to consider their approach to mandatory vaccinations for the 2013-2014 season. Do you know where your state stands on the issue?

On August 15, 2013, the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (“OIG”) released a report titled “Most Critical Access Hospitals Would Not Meet the Location Requirements if Required to Re-enroll in Medicare” (“Report”).  If the recommendations in the Report are fully carried out, it could cause nearly two-thirds of…Read More

On August 14, 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced that it reached a settlement with a not-for-profit New York health plan (“Health Plan”) stemming from alleged violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) Privacy and Security Rules. The settlement comes after an HHS Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”)…Read More

Executive Summary On August 2, 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) displayed the acute care hospital and long-term care hospital inpatient prospective payment system final rule for fiscal year 2014 (“Final Rule”). In one provision in the Final Rule, CMS aims to provide physicians and hospitals with a clear benchmark for determining the…Read More

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