Health Care Counsel Blog

California Governor Jerry Brown signed two major pieces of legislation affecting the application and hiring process for nearly all employees. AB 168 prohibits employers from seeking salary history information about an applicant for employment, among its related provisions.

Following in the steps of Maryland and Nevada, California just adopted a comprehensive drug pricing transparency law that will have a significant impact on the pharmaceutical industry, particularly on drug manufacturers. n

The issue of where a medical provider with an assignment of benefits may sue an ERISA-governed healthcare plan for unreimbursed medical care is important.

On August 21, 2017, the Health Resources and Services Administration published a proposed rule that would entertain even further delays of the implementation of a January 5, 2017 Final Rule regarding calculation of 340B ceiling prices.

Over the past month, California has been a veritable hotbed of activity regarding the regulation of cannabis for both medical and adult use.

On July 18, 2017, FDA held a public meeting to address efforts to ensure a balance between innovation in drug development and accelerating the access of the public to lower-cost alternatives to innovator drug therapies is maintained under the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released its annual proposed update to the hospital outpatient prospective payment system for calendar year 2018.

AnMed Health, a hospital located in South Carolina, recently agreed to pay almost $1.3 million dollars and enter into a settlement agreement with the HHS Office of Inspector General to resolve allegations that it violated the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.

Earlier this year, Abid Hospital in Pakistan began accepting PakCoin (a cryptocurrency similar to Bitcoin) as payment for healthcare services, paving the way for innovative medical payment solutions in Asia.

Last week, the FDA released a draft guidance titled Product Identifier Requirements Under the Drug Supply Chain Security Act—Compliance Policy, with a 60-day comment period ending around September 3, 2017.

After weeks of closed-door meetings about the content of the Senate’s health care bill, Senate Republicans released a “discussion draft” of their legislation on Thursday.

Medical providers seeking to pursue state law claims for payment from health care payers scored a win in the Second Circuit last month in a holding that affirms providers’ ability to hold health care insurers and other payers to their payment representations and promises.

Earlier this month, the Health Care Industry Cybersecurity Task Force sent to Congress the Report On Improving Cybersecurity in the Health Care Industry.

Alleged price gouging by drug manufacturers and distributors has been in the news the past several years, causing many lawmakers to threaten to take action. 

Pursuant to the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, manufacturers participating in the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program must pay an Additional Discount on Non-Innovator products to the extent the Average Manufacturer Prices of their products are rising faster than inflation.

The Supreme Court issued a stunning ERISA decision on Monday, overturning the law in the three federal circuits as to what constitutes a “church plan” that is exempt from ERISA’s requirements.

Last week, eClinicalWorks (ECW)—an electronic health records (EHR) vendor—settled an intervened False Claims Act case with the Department of Justice for $155 million.

In his first major announcement since taking office, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. finalized a major reorganization plan that had been under development since 2013. 

In a notice published in the Federal Register on Friday, May 19, 2017, the Health Resources and Services Administration announced that it would further delay the effective date of a final rule applicable to all drug manufacturers participating in the 340B Drug Pricing Program.

In recent months, a number of bills have been introduced or passed in Congress that would ease federal health care programs’ restrictions on telehealth. Currently, Medicare has strict limitations on telehealth.

A recent California Supreme Court ruling could significantly impact trials of physician “whistleblower” claims under California Health & Safety Code Section 1278.5 – maybe.  

On May 10, 2017, the US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) announced a settlement with Texas-based Memorial Hermann Health System for $2.4 million due to MHHS’s unauthorized disclosure of patient protected health information.

The Department of Health and Human Services recently issued an important new compliance guide, called Measuring Compliance Program Effectiveness: A Resource Guide.