Articles and Blogs

Comments to the Health Information Technology: Standards, Implementation Specifications, and Certification Criteria for Electronic Health Record Technology, 2014 Edition; Revisions to the Permanent Certification Program for Health Information Technology  Proposed Regulations are due in two weeks. If you wish to make comments to these proposed regulations, they must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. on…Read More

Part 1 of 2 It seems like yesterday, but we are two years into the “health care reform” era.  The Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) became law in March of 2010.  The primary goals of the ACA are three-fold:  increase coverage, reduce the cost of care and improve the quality of care.  Few argue the importance…Read More

In Freilich v. Upper Chesapeake Health System1, the Maryland Court of Appeals examined allegations of retaliatory peer review action against a physician who accused the Hospital of providing poor patient care.  Dr. Freilich is a nephrologist with a history of disruptive and abusive conduct towards patients and the nursing staff at two different hospitals in…Read More

On March 14, 2012, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published a final rule finalizing proposed revisions to the Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies (“DMEPOS”) supplier standards (“Final Rule”).  An article summarizing the April 4, 2011 proposed rule can be found here.  

Just hours after the Federal Appeals Court for the District of Columbia issued its emergency injunction preventing the enforcement of the NLRB’s Employee Rights Notice Posting Rule, the NLRB issued this statement:  “In view of the DC Circuit’s order, and in light of the strong interest in the uniform implementation and administration of agency rules, regional offices…Read More

On April 17, 2012, the Federal Appeals Court for the District of Columbia issued an emergency injunction preventing the NLRB from enforcing its Employee Rights Notice Posting rule that was set to become effective on April 30, 2012.  The Court’s Order granting the injunction sets an expedited schedule for hearing the appeal.  Nevertheless, even with the expedited schedule, the…Read More

Dealing with an employee’s poor attendance is one of the bigger headaches for management, especially in health care where a crucial employee’s unplanned absence could mean the difference between life and death for a patient.  But the FMLA and the ADA add layers of complexity and uncertainty for employers in striking a balance between employee…Read More

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) just released a report on the failure of nursing facilities to develop and implement adequate emergency preparedness and response programs.  The “Gaps Continue to Exist in Nursing Home Emergency Preparedness and Response During Disasters: 2007-2010” report is the summation of an OIG study to assess emergency preparedness and response…Read More

On March 28, 2012, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed 2011 Senate Bill 421 (the “Bill”) into law.  The Bill expands the ability of Wisconsin-licensed physician assistants (“PAs”) to authorize certain medical actions by generally allowing PAs to act on behalf of patients’ and the public’s health in situations that were previously limited to physicians and…Read More

Friday the 13th was a bad news day for the NLRB but potentially a very good news day for private employers.  A federal district court judge in South Carolina on Friday, April 13, 2012 held that the NLRB’s rule obligating private employers to post a notice explaining employee rights under the NLRA was beyond the…Read More