Health Law Advisor

On May 7, 2019, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) released new guidance for trial attorneys in the DOJ’s civil division regarding how entities under False Claims Act investigation can receive credit for cooperation.  The release of this new guidance follows public comments delivered in March by Michael Granston, director of DOJ’s civil fraud section, noting that DOJ was considering issuing additional guidance on cooperation credit related to False Claims Act matters.

The policy explains that cooperation credit in False Claims Act cases may be earned by “voluntarily ...

On April 30, 2019, Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski announced that the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) had published an updated version of the Criminal Division's 2017 guidance publication “Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs.”  In making the announcement, Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski said the update was designed to “better harmonize the prior Fraud Section publication with other Department guidance and legal standards.”  He noted that DOJ also sought “to provide additional transparency in how [it] will analyze a company's ...

This Employment Law This Week^® Monthly Rundown discusses the most important developments for employers heading into May 2019.

NYC is set to become the first city to ban pre-employment marijuana drug testing. With a growing number of jurisdictions legalizing the medical and adult recreational use of marijuana, it’s no surprise to see the emergence of additional employment-related laws. The New York City Council recently passed a bill that would prohibit marijuana drug testing for prospective employees as a condition of employment. The Council passed the bill on April 9 ...

June 6, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

NYC Roundtable Event

Our colleagues Denise M. Dadika, Michael F. McGahan, Kathleen M. Premo, and Ian Carleton Schaefer will be participating in an upcoming interactive roundtable discussion "Managing in the #MeToo Era: The Latest Legal Developments and Their Implications for Health Care Employers" on the implications of the #MeToo movement for members of the health care industry. The program will include an in-depth discussion on:

• creating a workplace environment free from harassment and discrimination, including the critical role ...

On Friday April 26, 2019, the US Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) issued a notification regarding HHS’ use of Civil Monetary Penalties (“CMP”) under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (“HITECH”) Act.  https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/04/30/2019-08530/enforcement-discretion-regarding-hipaa-civil-money-penalties.  The notice provides: “As a matter of enforcement discretion, and pending further ...

Florida has been at the forefront of some very interesting healthcare M&A activity in the past year, including an influx of private equity and consistent growth in Hospital and Health Plan vertical integration.  Unless subject to antitrust filing requirements, these high profile transactions are typically carried out under veils of confidentiality and announced upon completion.  However, Florida M&A is not insulated from recent Florida House health reform initiatives.  If the Florida House gets its way, the pace of healthcare transactions in Florida may hit a speed bump in the form ...

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) has published a final rule that will expand access to telehealth services for Medicare Advantage (“MA”) plan enrollees.[1] CMS Administrator Seema Verma characterized the agency’s latest policymaking efforts as “a historic step in bringing innovative technology to Medicare beneficiaries” and a way for the agency to provide “greater flexibility to Medicare Advantage plans, [so] beneficiaries can receive more benefits, at lower costs and better quality.”[2]

Traditionally, MA plans have been limited to ...

On February 14, 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) announced the Emergency Triage, Treatment and Transport reimbursement model (the “ET3 Model”), a demonstration project that aims to provide improved flexibility to ambulance crews addressing 911-initiated emergency calls for Medicare beneficiaries.

CMS plans to release its Request for Applications (“RFA”) to solicit participation in the ET3 Model from Medicare-enrolled ambulance providers and suppliers in the summer of 2019. The ET3 Model start date is anticipated for January 2020 for ...

In an announcement about New York’s budget for fiscal year 2020, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo highlighted, among other things, an amendment to Section 3-110 of New York’s Election Law mandating three hours of paid time off for all New Yorkers to vote on election day.

Under the amendment, which is effective immediately, all New York employees who are registered to vote may request up to three hours of paid time off to vote, regardless of their work schedules, as long as the request is made at least two working days before the election.  New York employers may designate that any ...

On March 27, 2019, the FDA announced that it would be proposing new amendments to key regulations regarding mammography facilities that would require these entities “to tell women more about how dense breast tissue can affect their health and increase their cancer risk.”  The proposed changes to mammography facility regulations would be the first issued in more than 20 years.  The FDA believes the change will “expand the information mammography facilities must provide to patients and health care professionals, allowing for more informed medical decision-making.”  In ...