False Claims Act Insights - Are All Healthcare “Kickbacks” Subject to FCA Liability?
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 204: Accelerating Life Sciences Startups with James Chappell of SCbio
Podcast — Drug Pricing: How Are Payers Responding to the IRA?
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 203: Manufacturing Specialty Drugs for Rare Diseases in North Carolina with Paul Testa of Kyowa Kirin
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 201: SHL Medical’s Investment in the Carolinas with Kimberlee Steele of SHL Medical
The Future of Laboratory Testing Just Got a Little Clearer: FDA's Final Rule on LDTs – Diagnosing Health Care
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 195: Life Sciences and Healthcare Workforce Development with Dr. John Hauser of Gaston College
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 194: Workforce Development for the Life Sciences Industry with David Stefanich of Rymedi
FDA Releases Laboratory-Developed Tests Final Rule – Thought Leaders in Health Law
Changes in FDA, Cannabis Policies and AI Developments
340B Drug Pricing Program Compliance
Episode 185: America’s Bioeconomy with Sarah Glaven, White House Research Biologist
Episode 183: Site Development for Life Sciences Companies with Adam Bruns of Site Selection Magazine
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 171: Laura Gunter, President of the NC Life Sciences Organization
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 169: Shirley Paddock, Senior VP of Clinical Development, Syneos Health
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 168: Christine Harhaj, Senior Director of Advocacy & Strategic Alliances, PhRMA
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 167: Dr. Ehsan Samei & Dr. Susan Halabi, Triangle CERSI
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 165: Doug Edgeton, President and CEO of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 163: David Ellison, Chief Data Scientist for Lenovo’s Infrastructure Solutions Group
Podcast: Direct Access Laboratory Testing - Future FDA Proposed Regulations on LDTs - Diagnosing Health Care
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has filed court pleadings stating that it does not intend to initiate enforcement actions against plans that maintain copay accumulator programs....more
On September 29, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia vacated a Trump-era rule from 2021 that allowed insurers to exclude drug manufacturer co-pay support coupons and assistance from a patient’s annual...more
On September 27, 2023, the Chief Judge of the District of Massachusetts decided that the standard in False Claims Act (“FCA”) cases premised on alleged violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute (“AKS”) is but-for causation....more
How could alleged kickbacks threaten to render insolvent a publicly traded company with assets (taken from its latest SEC filing) in excess of $43 billion? The answer stems from a recent decision by the United States District...more
Key Points - A new legal challenge to OIG on Medicare Beneficiaries’ ability to receive co-pay assistance has emerged. The Supreme Court has been asked to review HHS’s prohibition of co-pay assistance programs under the...more
Key Points - Patient outcomes studies suggest a clinical benefit of co-pay programs, and a negative impact of co-pay accumulator programs. Co-pay programs remain unavailable to participants in federal...more
This special inaugural issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights noticeable enforcement activity, OIG regulatory developments, CMS regulatory developments and other key developments for healthcare...more
On May 17, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a decision vacating the Accumulator Adjustment Rule, regulations issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in December 2020 as part...more
Drug Pricing Initiatives: Discussion continues in Congress and among stakeholders of drug pricing reform measures, including those that were originally part of H.R. 5376 (the Build Back Better Act, or BBBA). ...more
On September 23, 2020, the Office of Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) publicly released Advisory Opinion 20-05 (AO 20-05), a significant, adverse opinion rejecting a...more
On September 23, the HHS OIG published Advisory Opinion No. 20-05, advising that OIG found “highly suspect” a manufacturer’s proposal to create a copay subsidy program to help certain financially eligible Medicare...more
On September 23, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, Inc. agreed to pay $97 million to resolve claims that it illegally used a foundation as a conduit to pay the copays of...more
Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. is in the crosshairs of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on two separate matters. On August 18, the DOJ announced that it filed a lawsuit against Teva and an affiliate, Teva Neuroscience...more
Underfunded pension liabilities get needed attention The topic of Vermont’s overwhelming state employee and teachers’ pension burdens rears its head on occasion, but legislators quickly move on to challenges more easily...more
On January 21, 2020, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a $3 million settlement with Patient Services, Inc. (PSI) to resolve allegations of False Claims Act (FCA) violations. The DOJ alleged that PSI enabled three...more
On October 22, 2019, Skadden hosted our Ninth Annual Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Enforcement and Litigation Seminar in New York, which focused on U.S. enforcement issues companies face throughout the industry. The key...more
Two charitable foundations that helped patients pay for drug co-payments settled anti-kickback charges for $6 million. The Patient Access Network Foundation (PANF) agreed to pay $4 million and Good Days agreed to pay $2...more
Back in May, we wrote about substantial settlements totaling $125 million to resolve Department of Justice (DOJ) allegations that money donated by Astellas Pharma US, Inc. and Amgen Inc. to drug co-pay charities constituted...more
On September 4, 2019 the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a $15.4 million settlement with pharmaceutical company Mallinckrodt ARD LLC (Mallinckrodt) to resolve alleged violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) in two...more
Background. These days, almost all employer-sponsored group health plans require an employee (and any dependents) covered under the plan (each are referred to as a “member”) to pay “out-of-pocket” for covered expenses in the...more
In April, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finalized a proposal which is intended to further the Trump Administration’s priority of reducing the cost of prescription drug coverage, and to encourage...more
In a significant False Claims Act enforcement action, DOJ announced settlements with three pharmaceutical companies – Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Lundbeck, and Alexion Pharmaceuticals – under which they agreed to pay $122 million...more
On Thursday, August 9, 2018, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) signed H.4742, "An Act for prevention and access to appropriate care and treatment of addiction," which takes effect immediately. ...more
Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) are increasingly utilizing gag clauses in pharmacy contracts as a means of prohibiting pharmacies from telling customers that paying for drugs out of pocket would cost them less than if they...more
While the term “co-pay” might suggest a sharing of costs between patients and their health plans, a recent study by the University of Southern California Schaeffer Center found that almost a quarter of patients are paying...more