Monitoring the Pulse of Health Care and Life Sciences
*This post was co-authored by Paul Palma, legal intern at Robinson+Cole. Paul is not admitted to practice law.
In November 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) published the results of its audit assessing hospital compliance with the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule (HPT Rule). OIG determined that 37…
As part of its 2025 Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule (PFS Rule), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized two crucial updates to federal Medicare overpayments regulations (sometimes referred to as the “60-Day Rule”) that (1) align the standard for when an overpayment is identified with the applicable standard under the…
In a highly anticipated decision on an issue facing courts across the country, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held in late October that Massachusetts hospitals’ use of online tracking technologies that collect and transmit browsing activities of website visitors does not violate the Massachusetts Wiretap Law.
The Court determined that online interactions between visitors and…
*This post was co-authored by Paul Palma, legal intern at Robinson+Cole. Paul is not admitted to practice law.
On November 15, 2024, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) jointly announced an extension of current COVID-era tele-prescribing flexibilities for another year – through December 31, 2025 – via…
*This post was co-authored by Paul Palma, legal intern at Robinson+Cole. Paul is not admitted to practice law.
On September 30, 2024, Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida issued an order in United States ex rel. Clarissa Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates, LLC, holding that the…
On September 28, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed California Assembly Bill 3129 (the Bill). The Bill, if enacted, would have imposed new notice and consent requirements for private equity investors involved in healthcare transactions. Governor Newsom’s veto statement clarifies the Bill’s vetoing, stating that the Office of Health Care Affordability (OHCA) “was created as…
*This post was co-authored by Paul Palma, legal intern at Robinson+Cole. Paul is not admitted to practice law.
On September 18, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a settlement with Dunes Surgical Hospital and United Surgical Partners International, Inc. (USPI), an entity holding a partial ownership interest in Dunes, in connection with alleged violations…
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:…
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…
On March 12, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued an important decision interpreting the “willfulness” standard necessary to find a violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS). The decision provides important guidance for health care and pharmaceutical organizations on what constitutes a knowing violation of the AKS and for counsel…
