On June 6, 2024, the Supreme Court decided Becerra v. San Carlos Apache Tribe, No. 23-250, holding that the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDA), 25 U.S.C. § 5301 et seq., requires the Indian Health...more
On January 31, 2020, pursuant to Section 319 of the Public Health Service Act, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) determined that a public health emergency (PHE) exists due to the soaring...more
5/3/2023
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Durable Medical Equipment ,
Health Care Providers ,
Home Health Care ,
Hospitals ,
Physicians ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Telehealth
The rapid growth of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic continued and expanded access to care for millions of patients. Despite telehealth’s success in promoting continuity of care amid stay-at-home orders and social...more
On November 8, 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) updated and renamed its Self-Disclosure Protocol (SDP). The OIG had last updated the SDP in 2013. The update changes and...more
The Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a final rule that expands the extremely narrow warranties safe harbor to include bundled items and services. Consistent with other changes brought...more
One of the most frustrating issues for hospitals, particularly during a public health emergency with extremely limited bed capacity, is the inability to discharge a patient in a timely manner because they do not have...more
Providers have a new tool in their toolbox to promote population health. The Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) has adopted a new, extremely broad safe harbor that allows certain providers to give...more
As part of its Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care, on November 20, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published two final rules which make significant and sweeping changes to regulations relating to...more
On March 13, 2020, President Donald Trump issued emergency declarations for all states, tribes, territories and the District of Columbia under the Stafford Act in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This unprecedented...more
HHS has recently issued a great number of clarifications to multiple aspects of its Provider Relief Fund programs authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act....more
On April 27, 2020, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced guidance for health care providers regarding HRSA COVID-19 Claims...more
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act makes $100 billion in funds available to hospitals and other health care providers for health care-related expenses or lost revenues attributable to COVID-19. The...more
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is in the process of completing a $50 billion general distribution (General Distribution) from the $100 billion available to health care providers through the Public Health...more
Public health emergencies give rise to exceptional powers that can be exercised by federal and state officials. One of these powers is the ability to shield health care workers from liability in certain limited circumstances....more
Food and Drug Administration -
Although some distilleries have tried to pitch in to produce hand sanitizer in the wake of a national shortage caused by the coronavirus public health emergency, hand sanitizers are actually...more
In what can only be described as “out of the box” thinking, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to pay physicians for virtual check-ins, and for asynchronous interactions with patients in which...more
In the midst of the opioid epidemic, pharmacists and attorneys from across the country gathered last week for the 28th Annual Conference for the American Society for Pharmacy Law (ASPL). The conference brought together...more
On Friday, September 29, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) released its long-awaited proposed rule amending medical regulations to improve access to care for beneficiaries regardless of patient or provider locations....more
Recently, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its draft 2019 Medicare Advantage application. Health plans seeking to participate in the Medicare Advantage (MA) program for the first time or expanding...more
Even with the prospect of Obamacare repeal and replace on the backburner for now, the federal government continues to focus on health care. Following August recess, Congress will have less than four weeks to work through...more
On May 30, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it reached a settlement with commonly-owned Freedom Health Inc. and Optimum Healthcare, Inc. (Freedom Health) — two Tampa, Florida, managed care plans — to settle...more
On November 14, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the 2017 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) final rule in the Federal Register. The rule finalizes changes to the Electronic...more
On June 29, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed that penalties for False Claims Act (FCA) violations will increase substantially. The DOJ’s interim final rule nearly doubles the per violation penalty for FCA...more
On February 11, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the much anticipated final rule on the so-called “60-day rule.” The long road to the final rule began when the Affordable Care Act (ACA)...more
During the holiday season lull, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a weighty document. The agency put out a draft statement of work to procure Recovery Audit Contractors (RACs) for the Medicare...more