Articles and Blogs

Senate Continues Efforts to Tackle Substance Abuse Crisis The Senate Finance Committee held a hearing to address opioid and substance abuse disorders in Medicare, Medicaid and other HHS-related programs. The hearing addressed how the programs can adapt and be improved to address the crisis, as well as what the Trump administration and Congress can do…Read More

NATIONAL Feds Take CMS to Task Over Improper Telehealth Reimbursements Medicare Advisers Recommend Payment Cuts To Many Free-Standing ERs Amazon drops plan to become a major pharmaceutical distributor 17 of the highest-paid CEOs in healthcare Staff recruitment and retention in the age of clinician shortages: 2 experts weigh in Millennial doctors care about culture but…Read More

Consistent with earlier policy announcements, on April 3, 2018, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that it reached a settlement with Knorr-Bremse AG and Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation (“Wabtec”), two large rail equipment suppliers. The settlement resolves a lawsuit alleging the companies had maintained unlawful agreements not to compete…Read More

On April 11, 2018, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals split from the Fourth and Tenth Circuits when it issued an order effectively granting relators in qui tam actions an additional three years to file. The court ruled that § 3731(b)(2)’s three-year limitation, which has traditionally only been applied when the United States is a…Read More

Congress Back to Work Deliberating Opioid Measures Congress was jam-packed with opioid hearings this week. The House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee held a two-day hearing on more than 30 bills addressing Medicare and Medicaid coverage and payment policies relating to the opioid crisis. Bills considered by the subcommittee covered a range of patient issues…Read More

NATIONAL Feds boast $2.4B in healthcare fraud judgments, settlements GAO Finds Several Medicare Beneficiary Data Vulnerabilities Feds, 30 states claim McKesson illegally repackaged cancer drugs to maximize profits Fitch identifies biggest issues facing nonprofit hospitals The Disappearing Doctor: How Mega-Mergers Are Changing the Business of Medical Care How to Ramp Up Physician Engagement at Your…Read More

A critical element in any claim for retaliation under the False Claims Act is an adverse employment action. Most commonly, FCA retaliation claims rest on an employee’s involuntary termination due to lawful actions taken by the employee in reporting or opposing the submission of false claims to the government. In certain cases, an employee can…Read More

NATIONAL Healthcare analytics market will be worth nearly $54 billion by 2025, report says A small but growing movement of doctors that don’t accept insurance and charge a monthly fee could be a model for big employers like Amazon and JPMorgan Walmart, Not Amazon, May Turn Out To Be The Real Health Care Disruptor OIG:…Read More

The Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (the “Common Rule”) regulates the conduct of human subject research supported by federal agencies. On January 19, 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), as well as 15 other federal agencies and departments that are subject to the Common Rule, published significant changes to the…Read More

NATIONAL What are the biggest challenges for telemedicine programs? Still no word on whether CMS will approve lifetime Medicaid limits Alere Pays $33.2M to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Nurses continue to push for safe staffing in DC Hospitals embrace interoperability: As data exchange matures, leaders find ways to use it to their advantage Apple’s…Read More