Articles and Blogs

In recent years, increasing numbers of municipalities have asked health care entities that might otherwise be exempt from property taxes to enter into payment in lieu of taxes agreements (“PILOTs”). While most prevalent in the Northeast Region of the country, PILOTs are expanding in popularity nationwide as municipalities seek to expand their budgets by... READ MORE

Under the federal Stark Law, hospitals may provide non-monetary compensation to physicians up to an aggregate amount of $398 for calendar year 2017. The dollar limit for “medical staff incidental benefits” (e.g., meals, parking and other items or incidental services that are used on the hospital’s campus) is less than $33 per occurrence. Other requirements of... READ MORE

Driven in part by retroactive fees imposed upon pharmacies by pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) and compounded by recent high profile cases of significant price increases for relatively common drugs,1 both retail and institutional pharmacies have continued to push for enhanced prescription drug pricing transparency. Recent state and federal legislation, as well as lawsuits filed by coalitions... READ MORE

Hall Render has recently announced that Ammon Fillmore and Amy Mackin have been named Shareholders. Ammon Fillmore (Indianapolis office) graduated from the University of Iowa College of Law in 2010 and advises health care providers on matters including technology, privacy and security, information systems and regulatory compliance, as well as emerging and growing areas... READ MORE

Yesterday, the First Circuit Court of Appeals issued a new opinion in Universal Health Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar.  Applying the materiality test enunciated by the Supreme Court in June, the First Circuit reaffirmed its previous decision that the whistleblowers’ complaint sufficiently stated a claim under the False Claims Act (“FCA”)... READ MORE

DOL’s Final Rule Blocked On November 22, 2016, a federal district judge in Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction preventing the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) from implementing and enforcing its final rule establishing new salary thresholds for millions of traditionally exempt white collar employees.  As we reported in July, that new rule, which... READ MORE

Hall Render is pleased to announce attorney Brian Sabey has joined the firm’s Denver office. Brian’s practice focuses on employment law, compliance counseling and litigation. Brian earned his undergraduate degree and Master’s degree from Brigham Young University in 2011 and 2013, respectively. He received his J.D. from the Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark... READ MORE

Hall Render is pleased to announce attorney Patricia Connelly has joined the firm’s Indianapolis office. Patricia’s practice focuses on health information technology; general business transactions and services; data privacy and security and electronic health records; and general health law, including clinical services and operations. She also works with clients on intellectual property issues, including... READ MORE

On November 21, the EEOC announced the release of its updated Enforcement Guidance on National Origin Discrimination (“Guidance”), representing the first official guidance on this topic in 14 years. The new Guidance replaces the EEOC Compliance Manual, Volume II, Section 13: National Origin Discrimination, previously published in 2002. The Guidance may be accessed here. The... READ MORE

Congress Returns to Washington The House and Senate returned this week to begin the “lame duck” portion of the congressional calendar. The session is expected to run through December 9 at which point lawmakers will adjourn the 114th Congress. The only must-do item on the Congressional agenda is funding the federal government, which expires... READ MORE