On May 9, 2024, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act No. 24-4, “An Act Concerning Emergency Department Crowding,” (The Act). The Act requires all Connecticut hospitals with an emergency department to, no later than January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter until January 1, 2029, analyze certain data with the goals of:
Connecticut Governor Signs Bill Prohibiting Health Care Providers from Reporting Medical Debt to Credit Reporting Agencies
On May 9, 2024, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act No. 24-6, “An Act Concerning the Reporting of Medical Debt,” (The Act). The Act prohibits health care providers from reporting medical debt to credit rating agencies and makes various updates to existing laws regarding the reporting of medical debt already applicable
HHS Proposes Disincentives for Providers that Commit Information Blocking
On November 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a proposed rule titled “21st Century Cures Act: Establishment of Disincentives for Health Care Providers That Have Committed Information Blocking” (the Proposed Rule). The Proposed Rule, if finalized, would create disincentives for health care providers that the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) determines have committed “information blocking” (as defined at 45 C.F.R. § 171.103).Continue Reading HHS Proposes Disincentives for Providers that Commit Information Blocking
OIG Issues Favorable Opinion Regarding Physician Group’s Proposal to Pay Bonuses to its Employed Physicians Based on Net Profits
On October 13, 2023, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) published Advisory Opinion 23-07 (Advisory Opinion), in which the OIG issued a favorable opinion regarding a physician group employer’s proposal to pay bonuses to its employed physicians based on net profits derived from certain procedures performed by the physicians at ambulatory surgery centers.Continue Reading OIG Issues Favorable Opinion Regarding Physician Group’s Proposal to Pay Bonuses to its Employed Physicians Based on Net Profits
Connecticut Supreme Court Addresses Contested Case Issue in Ruling on Certificate of Need Appeals
This post was co-authored by Ben Jensen, member Robinson+Cole’s Technology Industry Team.
On July 25, 2023, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued an opinion in High Watch Recovery Center, Inc. v. Dept. of Public Health that addresses the subject of the right to file an appeal of a Certificate of Need (CON) decision under the Connecticut Uniform Administrative Procedure Act (APA). High Watch involved a case where a party was allowed to intervene in a CON proceeding after the state CON agency had already elected to hold a discretionary hearing on the application at issue. A trial court declined to hear the appeal, and the Appellate Court affirmed that declination, on the basis that there was no “contested case” and no right to appeal the decision in Superior Court because the intervenor never expressly requested a hearing. The Supreme Court reversed this holding, concluding that intervention in opposition to the application was sufficient to render the case contested without need for the intervenor to request a hearing that was already scheduled. The ruling is significant in that it rejects a rigid application of the statutes governing CON procedures and instead focuses on the substance of the public hearing at issue in assessing whether a contested case is presented. Understanding the distinction between mandatory and discretionary hearings is an essential consideration for parties to CON proceedings to avoid foreclosing potential appellate rights.Continue Reading Connecticut Supreme Court Addresses Contested Case Issue in Ruling on Certificate of Need Appeals
Connecticut Expands Applicability of State False Claims Act
On June 26, 2023, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act 23-129: “An Act Concerning Liability for False and Fraudulent Claims” (the Act). The Act expands application of Connecticut’s False Claims Act (CFCA) to all claims for money or property to the state of Connecticut (except as expressly provided in the CFCA) and accordingly expands the scope of conduct covered by the CFCA. The Act does so by removing the current limitation on the CFCA’s applicability to only state-administered health or human services programs. The Act took effect July 1, 2023.Continue Reading Connecticut Expands Applicability of State False Claims Act
Connecticut Governor Signs Health Care Bill Revising Connecticut’s Facility Fee Law
On June 27, 2023, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act 23-171 entitled “An Act Protecting Patients and Prohibiting Unnecessary Health Care Costs” (“the Act”), which includes changes to Connecticut’s facility fees law. The Act implements previously-announced legislative initiatives that are the product of collaboration between Governor Lamont and the Connecticut Hospital Association, as well as other health care stakeholders.Continue Reading Connecticut Governor Signs Health Care Bill Revising Connecticut’s Facility Fee Law
Connecticut Health Care Bill Revises Provider-Payor Contracting Requirements to Address Competitive Concerns
On June 7, 2023, the Connecticut Legislature passed HB6669, “An Act Protecting Patients and Prohibiting Unnecessary Health Care Costs” (“the Act”), which includes a prohibition on certain contractual clauses in agreements between health care providers and insurance companies. The Act implements previously-announced legislative initiatives that are the product of collaboration between Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and the Connecticut Hospital Association, as well as other health care stakeholders. Governor Lamont is expected to sign the Act but has not done so as of this publication.Continue Reading Connecticut Health Care Bill Revises Provider-Payor Contracting Requirements to Address Competitive Concerns
Connecticut Governor’s Health Care Bill Makes Important Changes to the Certificate of Need Process
On June 7, 2023, the Connecticut Legislature passed HB6669, “An Act Protecting Patients and Prohibiting Unnecessary Health Care Costs” (“the Act”). The Act implements legislative initiatives announced earlier this week that are the product of collaboration between Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and the Connecticut Hospital Association, as well as other health care stakeholders. Governor Lamont is expected to sign the Act but has not done so as of this publication.Continue Reading Connecticut Governor’s Health Care Bill Makes Important Changes to the Certificate of Need Process
Eighteen States’ Attorneys General Send Letter to CMS in Support of Proposed Rule Requiring Disclosure of Certain Nursing Home and SNF Ownership Information
On April 14, 2023, the Attorneys General of 18 different states sent a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure in support of a proposed rule that would require the disclosure of certain ownership information regarding Medicare skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and Medicaid nursing facilities (collectively “Nursing Facilities”), particularly from private equity investors and real estate investment trusts (the “Proposed Rule”).Continue Reading Eighteen States’ Attorneys General Send Letter to CMS in Support of Proposed Rule Requiring Disclosure of Certain Nursing Home and SNF Ownership Information