Health Law Advisor

We are pleased to announce that Epstein Becker Green’s first app - Wage & Hour Guide for Employers - is now available for download in the App Store on iTunes, for both iPhones and iPads.  You can find the app by searching for “Wage Hour” or clicking here. 

The Wage & Hour Guide app enables employers to access up-to-date federal wage and hour guidelines as well as various state guidelines, which can differ by jurisdiction.  In addition, users can obtain insights and commentary about the latest wage and hour developments and issues by accessing Epstein Becker Green’s Wage and Hour ...

 Medicaid home care aide services providers need to act quickly to avoid the risk of non-payment for services.  The New York State Home Care Worker Parity Act, Public Health Law § 3614-c, establishes minimum “total compensation” requirements for “home care aides” who perform Medicaid-reimbursed work for certified home health agencies (“CHHAs”), long term home health care programs (“LTHHCPs”) and managed care plans (“MCPs”).  The Act applies to both mainstream managed care plans and all forms of managed long term care plans, and also affects licensed and ...

by Wendy C. Goldstein and Kathleen A. Peterson

On December 27, 2011, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration ("FDA"), Office of Prescription Drug Promotion ("OPDP") (formerly the Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising, and Communications) released a new draft guidance document titled "Guidance for Industry on Responding to Unsolicited Requests for Off-Label Information About Prescription Drugs and Medical Devices" (the "Draft Guidance"). The OPDP will accept comments on the Draft Guidance through March 29, 2011.

The FDA has a longstanding policy of permitting ...

Written by: Robert S. Groban Jr.

The U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Special Counsel ("OSC") was established by Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 ("IRCA"). The OSC investigates and prosecutes employers for discriminating against workers based on national origin, citizenship status, and document abuse. Liability can attach when an employer acts too zealously in satisfying its Form I-9 obligations, such as asking foreign-looking applicants for more or different documents than it seeks from "American" workers or instructing employment applicants on which ...

On December 6, 2011, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a proposed rule on Form M-1 filing requirements, a proposed rule on DOL ex parte cease and desist orders, a notice of proposed form revision to Form M-1 and a notice of proposed form revision to Form 5500  implementing new requirements for multiple employer welfare arrangements (“MEWAs”) under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”) (referred to as the “Proposed Rules”).  PPACA prohibits false statements or representations of fact about a MEWA’s financial condition ...

The plaintiff, a former employee of On Lok, inc., a non-profit organization which serves the Bay Area elderly population, filed a lawsuit after her employment was terminated when she was seven (7) months pregnant and shortly before her anticipated maternity leave was expected to begin.  She claimed pregnancy discrimination and retaliation in response to her request for leaves of absence under the California Family Rights Act and the California Pregnancy Disability Leave Law,  among other related causes of action.

 The Epstein Becker Green defense team of Steven Blackburn and ...

Acquirers of businesses often prefer to buy the assets of a seller, rather than the stock, to avoid assuming the seller’s liabilities.  Indeed,  the general common law rule is that a purchaser of assets does not assume the seller’s liabilities absent an agreement to do so, fraud or other inequitable conduct between the parties, whereas in a stock sale, the buyer steps into the shoes of the seller and assumes all assets and liabilities of the seller.  In an asset sale, the seller, in turn, would typically use part or all of the sale proceeds to pay its liabilities.  During the pre-sale due ...

by Gretchen Harders, Daly D.E. Temchine, and Joseph J. Kempf, Jr.

On December 7, 2011, final rules on the medical loss ratio (“MLR”) requirements for insured health plans (and an interim final rule for non-federal governmental plans) were issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The MLR requirements are effective January 1, 2012, and any issuer who does not meet the MLR requirements for the 2011 MLR reporting year must pay rebates by August 1, 2012. This alert ...

Written By:  Ana S. Salper

Social media has revolutionized how we communicate with one another. From Facebook to Twitter, YouTube to blogs, social networking sites have permeated the workplace in ways that have significant implications for all employers.

Social media is both a source for marketing and promoting companies and products as well as an enterprise risk factor if not used appropriately or in a compliant way. In the health care industry, with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) and other privacy laws at stake, employers must have a ...