Articles and Blogs

Massive FY 2020 Funding Bills Loaded with Health Care-Related Provisions Just hours before another looming government shutdown, President Trump signed a two-part spending deal funding federal agencies that include CMS, FDA and NIH, among others. The funding bill contains several significant health policy provisions. Most notably, it will repeal three taxes enacted as part... READ MORE

Under the federal Stark Law, hospitals may provide non-monetary compensation to physicians up to an aggregate amount of $423 for calendar year 2020. 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 $36 per occurrence. Other... READ MORE

On December 11, 2019, the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality/Quality, Safety & Oversight Group at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued a memorandum to State Survey Agency Directors entitled “Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Mission & Priority document (MPD) – Action” (“FY 2020 Memo”) that announced its work and intentions for the fiscal... READ MORE

This week, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) rescinded a nearly 22-year-old policy opposing mandatory arbitration agreements in employment discrimination disputes imposed as a condition of employment. The 1997 Policy In 1997, the EEOC took the position that “agreements that mandate binding arbitration of discrimination claims as a condition of employment are contrary to... READ MORE

NATIONAL Where the AMA stands on 7 of the year’s biggest health care issues Why digital health has been such a disappointment, and how to change that 106 hospitals, health systems that launched telehealth services in 2019 64 hospitals that planned, opened or broke ground on ASCs in 2019 CMS to Repay Site-Neutral Payments... READ MORE

Your vendor just sent you a quote to let you obtain the software that you need, and it contains a link to the vendor’s standard terms and conditions. If it’s a seven-figure or eight-figure deal, one can assume that the vendor had the good sense to send you an editable version of the contract... READ MORE

Is judicial approval required for accepted Rule 68(a) offers of judgment in Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) cases? The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently said “no” and, in doing so, contradicted at least part of a longstanding view that settlement of all FLSA matters requires either approval by the U.S.... READ MORE

Hall Render is pleased to announce Andrew Harrison has joined the firm’s FDA & Life Sciences practice segment in its Milwaukee office. Andrew Harrison regularly counsels pharmaceutical, biotechnology, dietary supplement and medical device manufacturers and distributors as well as pharmacies and outsourcing facilities on a wide array of U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Drug Enforcement... READ MORE

On December 12, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) announced the second settlement under its “Right of Access Initiative.” A health care company that provides primary care and interventional pain management services (“Provider”) will pay $85,000 and enter into a Corrective Action Plan (“CAP”) to settle potential... READ MORE

Give and Take: CMS Announces Repayment for 2019 Site-Neutral Cuts Yet Announces Same Cuts for 2020 This week, CMS announced that any hospital paid a lower amount for a routine clinic visit in 2019 due to implementation of the site-neutral payment policy will automatically be paid the difference from the older, higher amount. CMS... READ MORE