On November 15, 2018, the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it had settled its suit against Atrium Health over the imposition of “anti-steering” and “anti-transparency” restrictions in...more
Over the last month, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) cleared Cigna Corp.’s $67 billion acquisition of Express Scripts Holding Co. with no conditions and CVS Health Corp.’s $69 billion merger with Aetna Inc....more
On June 25, 2018, the Supreme Court held that American Express Co.’s “non-discrimination” rules that prevented merchants from steering customers to other credit card brands do not violate the federal antitrust laws....more
On May 17–18, 2018, the American Bar Association (ABA) and American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA) hosted their biannual Antitrust in Healthcare Conference in Arlington, Virginia. The conference featured programs on a...more
Conspiracies between competitors can be hard to prove, even when other parties to the alleged conspiracy have settled. On May 31, 2017, a federal judge denied summary judgment and ruled that the Department of Justice (DOJ)...more
HIPAA and Emerging Technologies -
Editor’s Note: According to a HIMSS Mobile Technology Survey of healthcare provider employees, about 90% say they are using mobile devices to engage patients in their healthcare—and 36%...more
6/23/2017
/ Anticompetitive Agreements ,
Breach Notification Rule ,
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Email ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Internet of Things ,
Marketing ,
Medicare Part D ,
Mobile Apps ,
PHI ,
Text Messages
CMS Issues Self-Referral Disclosure Protocol for Stark Law Violations -
On March 28, 2017, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a new voluntary self-referral disclosure protocol (SRDP) for disclosing...more
4/25/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Steering Rules ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Deceptive Intent ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Pharmacist ,
Self-Referral ,
Stark Law ,
Telehealth ,
Trump Administration
The Department of Justice's (DOJ) case against Carolinas Healthcare System's (CHS) anti-steering contract clauses has survived initial attempts by CHS to dismiss the case. Despite the reversal of the DOJ's win in the American...more
Under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act, parties to transactions meeting certain size thresholds are required to notify the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission and to observe a...more
9/1/2016
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exemptions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Hart-Scott-Rodino Act ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Passive Activity ,
Voting Securities
The Vulnerability of Healthcare Information -
According to a report the Brookings Institute issued in May 2016, 23% of all data breaches occur in the healthcare industry. Nearly 90% of healthcare organizations had some...more
7/28/2016
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Steering Rules ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Bad Faith ,
Brandt Fees ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Protection ,
Denial of Benefits ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Electronic Medical Records ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
False Implied Certification Theory ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Gobeille v Liberty Mutual Insurance Com. ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Justice Scalia ,
Market Power ,
Materiality ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Nurses ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI ,
Preemption ,
Punitive Damages ,
Religious Institutions ,
Right to Privacy ,
SCOTUS ,
Undue Burden ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar ,
Wearable Technology ,
Whole Woman's Health v Hellerstedt ,
Zubik v Burwell
Real-Time Data Analytics in Government Investigations and Reducing Exposure -
It is not every day that the words “innovative” and “nimble” are used when referring to an agency of the federal government bureaucracy. Yet,...more
6/24/2016
/ ACOs ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Government Investigations ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
HEAT ,
Hospital Mergers ,
IRS ,
MCOs ,
Medi-Cal ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare Advantage ,
OIG ,
Section 340B
On November 13, the Solomon Center for Health Law and Policy at Yale Law School held its inaugural conference, "The New Healthcare Industry: Integration, Consolidation, Competition in the Wake of the Affordable Care Act." The...more