Articles and Blogs

This past year has gone by rather quickly, and there has been a lot of activity in the employment and labor area – especially in the labor area! The National Labor Relations Board was particularly active with expansive rulings on employee use of Facebook and social media, walkouts, banners, rat balloons, hand billing, discussion of…Read More

On November 30, 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published the CY 2012 OPPS/ASC Final Rule with comment period (“Final Rule”) that established a formal process for review and reconsideration of the supervision level assigned to certain outpatient therapeutic services furnished in hospitals and critical access hospitals (“CAHs”).  The Final Rule is…Read More

Summary On November 30, 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published the CY 2012 OPPS/ASC Final Rule with comment period (“Final Rule”).  In the Final Rule, CMS revised provider agreement regulations addressing hospital and critical access hospital (“CAH”) patient notification requirements for situations where a physician is not present in the hospital…Read More

Summary On November 30, 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published the CY 2012 OPPS/ASC Final Rule with comment period (“Final Rule”).  The Final Rule implemented a portion of Section 6001(a) of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) requiring CMS to develop a process for  physician-owned hospitals  to request an exception to the…Read More

Effective December 2, 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued and implemented new and revised guidance in Appendix W of the Medicare State Operations Manual (“Interpretive Guidelines”) related to the Medicare Conditions of Participation for Critical Access Hospitals (“CAHs”).  Importantly, CMS issued new Interpretive Guidelines to 42 C.F.R. § 485.635(f) concerning CAH…Read More

Today, the National Labor Relations Board agreed to postpone the effective date of its Employee Rights notice-posting rule at the request of the federal court in Washington, D.C. hearing a legal challenge regarding the rule. The Board’s ruling states that it has determined that postponing the effective date of the rule would facilitate the resolution…Read More

On December 21, 2011, the National Labor Relations Board adopted a final rule amending its election case procedures to reduce unnecessary litigation and delays. The rule will be published in the Federal Register on Thursday, December 22, 2011 and is due to take effect on April 30, 2012. The Rule Will Speed Up Union Elections This new…Read More

Both the House and the Senate have now approved language in the National Defense Authorization Act, which, if it becomes law, appears to exempt TRICARE network providers from having to comply with burdensome affirmative action obligations.  (This article is a follow-up to the December 9, 2011 Employment Law News, available here.) House and Senate Versions Reconciled…Read More

Executive Summary Under the Federal Stark Law, for calendar year 2012, hospitals may provide non-monetary compensation to physicians up to an aggregate amount of $373.  The dollar limit for “medical staff incidental benefits” (e.g., meals, parking, other items or incidental services that are used on the hospital’s campus) increases slightly for 2012 to less than $31…Read More

Wisconsin Act 70 makes major changes to Wisconsin Statutes that regulate nursing homes and facilities that serve individuals with developmental disabilities. Signed into law on November 16, 2011 and effective December 2, 2011, the Act benefits federally certified nursing homes in the form of reduced fines and all nursing homes and facilities serving the developmentally disabled…Read More