Articles and Blogs

On November 30, 2018, CMS issued a Memorandum to State Survey Agency Directors (QSO-19-02-NH), announcing its concerns about adequate registered nurse staffing in skilled nursing facilities and that it will provide CMS Regional Offices and State Survey Agencies with a list of facilities with potential staffing issues to support survey activities for evaluating sufficient staffing and... READ MORE

The DOJ plans to dismiss 11 FCA lawsuits involving the new theory that patient assistance services supplied by drugmakers are unlawful kickbacks.¹ These lawsuits were brought by shell company whistleblowers backed by the National Healthcare Analysis Group (“NHCA”), a company that specializes in generating FCA cases. The 11 cases were essentially the same complaints with a different... READ MORE

Negotiations to Secure Funding and Avoid Government Shutdown Collapse At the time of this writing, the federal government is on the brink of a partial shutdown at midnight if Congress and President Trump do not come to an agreement on outstanding government funding legislation. The process began Wednesday with the Senate passing a continuing... READ MORE

NATIONAL Federal judge rules Obama’s health care overhaul unconstitutional Amazon explored buying at-home medical test company Amy Abernethy to join FDA as principal deputy commissioner 4 biggest Anti-Kickback settlements involving hospitals in 2018 12 latest healthcare industry lawsuits, settlements Will interstate compacts turn into national licensure? What doctors need to know about MACRA’s new... READ MORE

The Secretary of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) recently announced that Medicaid may allow hospitals and health systems to use funds to pay for patients’ housing.[1] HHS has already experimented with this idea by providing states with waivers under Section 1115 of the Social Security Act to expand Medicaid coverage to individuals experiencing homelessness.[2]... READ MORE

Under the federal Stark Law, hospitals may provide non-monetary compensation to physicians up to an aggregate amount of $416 for calendar year 2019. 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 $35 per occurrence. Other... READ MORE

Congress Tackles Multiple Health Provisions This Week The standstill on progress over finalizing the remaining fiscal year 2019 spending bills has given Congress the opportunity to advance some outstanding health care measures. This week, the House of Representatives passed legislation including the ACE Kids Act to allow state Medicaid programs to use a home... READ MORE

On December 11, 2018, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) announced that a critical access hospital in Colorado (the “Hospital”) will settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) by paying a civil penalty of $111,400 and adopting a corrective action... READ MORE

NATIONAL US health care spending hits $3.5 trillion in 2017, but rate of growth slows CMS finalizes risk adjustment rule for benefit year 2018 4 health systems raising their minimum wage Demand for both physicians and nurse practitioners driving up compensation, study finds Report predicts shortage of nearly 30,000 doctors in geriatrics American Hospital... READ MORE

A number of organizations, including many health care and financial organizations, nationwide have reported receiving emails that state that an explosive device has been brought into the recipient’s facility and will be detonated unless a ransom is paid in Bitcoin. Law enforcement authorities are investigating; however, at this point, no explosive devices have been... READ MORE