The health omnibus trailer SB-184, which created the Office of Health Care Affordability (OHCA), is set to usher in a significant change in California’s health care regulatory landscape. Beginning in 2024, certain health care...more
On April 28, the Massachusetts Public Health Council (“PHC”) approved final proposed amendments to the clinic licensure regulations. The initial revisions presented by the Department of Public Health (the “Department”) in...more
The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (“HPC”) held its annual Health Care Cost Trends Hearing on October 16-17, 2018. The hearing covered a wide range of topics affecting the health care industry here in the Commonwealth...more
10/25/2018
/ Electronic Medical Records ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Mental Health ,
Opioid ,
Popular ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Telemedicine ,
Transparency
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) Determination of Need (DoN) Program has proposed a number of changes to the DoN Regulations (105 CMR 100.000, et. seq.). Program Director Nora Mann presented the proposed...more
The U. S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a memo dated January 4, 2018 regarding federal marijuana enforcement policy, directing all U.S. Attorneys to enforce the laws enacted by Congress and to follow well-established...more
1/5/2018
/ Cole Memorandum ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has provided a much anticipated pathway to enable for-profit entities to operate Registered Marijuana Dispensaries (RMDs). DPH’s Medical Use of Marijuana Program (the “RMD...more
10/16/2017
/ Business Licenses ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Corporate Conversions ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Dispensaries ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
New Guidance ,
Nonprofits ,
Recreational Use ,
Secretary of State
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has promulgated final Hospital Licensure Regulations. Approved by unanimous vote of the Massachusetts Public Health Council (PHC) on March 8, 2017, DPH anticipates that the...more
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) Determination of Need (DoN) Program has promulgated final DoN regulations (shown here compared against the draft revisions.) Approved by the Massachusetts Public Health...more
Massachusetts Long Term Care Facility Regulations – Proposed Amendments -
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) continues its efforts to revise its regulations to comply with Executive Order 562, which...more
At Public Health Council meeting on November 9, 2016, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) released yet another round of proposed regulatory amendments. On deck were regulations concerning Long Term Care...more
The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission conducted its fourth annual Cost Trends Hearing on October 17 and 18, 2016, under the requirements of Massachusetts’s 2012 health care reform legislation (“Chapter 224”). The hearing...more
In previous blog posts, we addressed the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s (DPH) proposed regulations that affect hospitals, dialysis clinics and medical marijuana programs. In this final post on DPH’s recent...more
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has released for public comment proposed amendments to DPH’s Medical Marijuana Regulations (105 CMR 725) (the “regulations”). DPH believes that believes the proposed...more
10/4/2016
/ Caregivers ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Dispensaries ,
Executive Orders ,
Health Care Providers ,
Laboratories ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Nurse Practitioners ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Public Comment ,
Public Health
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has released for public comment proposed amendments to DPH’s Hospital Licensure Regulations (105 CMR 130.00) (the “regulations”). The proposed amendments are designed to...more
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has released proposed amended regulations for the licensure of hospitals, clinics, and out-of-hospital dialysis units, proposed the rescission of separate birth center...more
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) Determination of Need (DoN) Program has unveiled proposed regulations that constitute an ambitious and, perhaps, long overdue overhaul of the DoN Program regulations....more
CMS issued a final rule, published in the Federal Register on Friday, June 10, 2016, updating how the performance of ACOs participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) is measured and compensated. This rule is...more
Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services, Marylou Sudders, held a public meeting earlier this week to receive feedback on the proposal of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) to overhaul the...more
The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC) has issued its 2015 Cost Trends Report, based on the HPC’s annual health care cost growth hearings. The report contained 13 key recommendations across a wide range of health...more
President Obama has announced plans to tighten gun control regulations, including applying the background check requirement to dealers at gun shows and on websites. Federal law already requires that those “engaged in the...more
On June 4, 2015, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS") released the highly anticipated Final Rule ("Final Rule") updating the Medicare Shared Savings Program ("Shared Savings Program"). One of the few provisions...more
In a fraud alert released today, the OIG warns that physician compensation arrangements, such as medical directorship compensation, may potentially violate the anti-kickback statue. The fraud alert reiterates the “one...more
At today’s Massachusetts Public Health Council meeting, Department of Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel, MD, MPH, announced sweeping changes to the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Program in Massachusetts. The changes...more
The Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services(“OIG”) responded to concerns expressed by the American Hospital Association (“AHA”) regarding the OIG’s hospital compliance reviews,...more
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has published long-awaited changes to the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP). The official version of the proposed rule (the Proposed Rule), released December 8th, 2014,...more