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Health
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June 04, 2024
FDA Advisers Rebuff Bid To Treat PTSD With MDMA
A panel of public health experts on Tuesday dealt a blow to a historic effort to regulate MDMA therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder, saying although the positive effects shown in clinical trials are promising, the proposal was hindered by too many confounding factors.
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June 04, 2024
Justices Raise Doubt Hospital System Must Face Wage Claims
The California Supreme Court appeared open Tuesday to undoing a finding that a hospital system is not a public entity and must face workers' meal- and rest-break claims, with one justice noting that state law repeatedly calls the system a public entity and saying, "So what do we make of that?"
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June 04, 2024
Ga. Doc, Cos. Not Responsible For Credentialing, Panel Says
The Georgia Court of Appeals on Tuesday affirmed the dismissal of claims against an anesthesiologist and two anesthesiology staffing companies accused of negligently credentialing a certified registered nurse anesthetist who allegedly caused a patient's death during a back pain alleviation procedure.
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June 04, 2024
Ga. County Wants 11th Circ. To Rethink Trans Care Ban Ruling
A Georgia county that lost a legal challenge to a provision of its health plan that bars coverage for gender-affirming surgery has asked the full Eleventh Circuit to revisit the decision, arguing that an opinion last month wrongly found the policy discriminates against transgender people, rather than being isolated to a single procedure.
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June 04, 2024
2nd Circ. Says ERISA Blocks Cigna Bill Backpedaling Suit
The Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a podiatric medicine provider's suit alleging Cigna illegally backtracked on covering a patient's $200,000 bill, ruling that a lower court was right to find that federal benefits law blocks the healthcare provider's breach of contract claims.
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June 04, 2024
Benefits Plan Inks Deal To End Mental Health Coverage Suit
The employee benefits plan at Mountain Area Health Education Center became the last remaining defendant to reach a settlement in a North Carolina district court lawsuit accusing an insurer and others of refusing to cover the cost of a patient's stay at a residential treatment center.
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June 04, 2024
White House Threatens Veto Over Policy Riders In VA Bill
The White House has threatened to veto a $147.5 billion bill funding military construction and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, citing partisan policy proposals it said would harm minority groups and risk patient safety at VA medical facilities.
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June 04, 2024
Nurse Staffing Exec Wants Antitrust, Fraud Charges Separated
An indicted home health care staffing executive asked a Nevada federal court to separate the antitrust charge against him for allegedly fixing nurses wages from claims that he concealed the conspiracy and government probe when selling the business for more than $10 million.
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June 04, 2024
Psychiatrist's Billing Scheme Warrants 11 Years, Feds Say
A psychiatrist convicted of billing Medicare and private insurers for $19 million worth of treatments he never provided should serve more than 11 years in prison for the "brazen, greed-fueled" fraud scheme, prosecutors have told a Boston federal judge.
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June 04, 2024
Fox Rothschild Partner Can't Testify In NJ Fraud Retrial
Fox Rothschild LLP partner Ernest E. Badway can't serve as an expert witness for a businessman facing retrial on securities fraud claims, a New Jersey federal judge ruled Tuesday, siding with the government's contention that the testimony would be irrelevant.
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June 04, 2024
Ex-Keller & Heckman Scientist Joins K&L Gates In DC
K&L Gates LLP announced Tuesday that a longtime scientist at Keller and Heckman LLP joined its Washington, D.C., office as the firm's first senior scientific adviser.
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June 04, 2024
Sens. Offer Stark Takes On Abortion Two Years Post-Dobbs
Republican and Democratic members of the Senate health committee on Tuesday offered two different views of abortion in America two years after the Dobbs Decision overturned the federal right to the procedure.
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June 03, 2024
Voir Dire With No Judge Present Persists In State Courts
Data released Friday by the National Center for State Courts revealed that voir dire conducted by lawyers with no judge present in the room persists in 7% of state court trials, but has been virtually eliminated in federal courts.
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June 03, 2024
Humana Hit With Investor Suit Over Post-COVID Costs
Health insurer Humana and two executives were hit with an investor class action on Monday, claiming they misled shareholders about the cost of pent-up demand for medical treatments once the COVID-19 pandemic subsided.
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June 03, 2024
Colo. Gov Signs Compromise Bill Raising Damages Caps
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Monday signed a law that will increase statutory caps on noneconomic damages for wrongful death and injury claims, as part of a deal to avoid a ballot-box fight between medical providers and personal injury lawyers.
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June 03, 2024
DC Judge Axes Ariz. Tribe's $2.6M Veteran Care Claims
A D.C. federal court judge dismissed an Arizona tribe's bid to recoup nearly $2.6 million in Native American veteran care reimbursements from the federal government, saying the tribe has not plausibly alleged that the Indian Health Services' actions in withholding the funding caused any injury.
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June 03, 2024
NY 'No-Fault' Insurance Fraudster Gets 10 Years
A federal judge on Monday sentenced the ringleader of an insurance fraud scheme to the maximum term of 10 years in prison for what prosecutors say was a bribery-fueled, 14-year, $60 million scam that exploited New York's no-fault laws.
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June 03, 2024
Surgeons Denied Early Exit From GEICO's Bogus Injury Suit
A pair of orthopedic surgeons can't escape GEICO's lawsuit claiming they conspired with a personal injury attorney to file inflated insurance claims for car accident victims based on bogus medical documents, a North Carolina federal judge ruled Monday.
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June 03, 2024
Drug Cos. Can Depose DC AG In Drug Price-Fixing Row
A Connecticut federal judge reluctantly ordered the District of Columbia Attorney General's Office to be deposed by the drug companies wrapped up in more than 40 states' claims over an alleged price-fixing conspiracy, noting that he would not have done so but for the case being remanded from a sprawling multidistrict litigation in Pennsylvania.
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June 03, 2024
DOL Fights Injunction Bid In Data-For-Insurance Fight
The U.S. Department of Labor pushed back against two companies' permanent injunction bid in a lawsuit that had challenged a now-vacated finding from the agency that a data-for-insurance health plan offering wasn't covered by federal benefits law, arguing a Texas federal court should instead end proceedings in the case.
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June 03, 2024
4 Mass. Rulings You Might Have Missed In May
Massachusetts state court judges rejected a law firm's effort to fight malpractice claims by pointing the finger at a Rhode Island judge, and ruled that an online booking platform can boot the owner of Bali vacation villas from its site, among other under-the-radar decisions handed down in May.
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June 03, 2024
Amazon, Wondery Want Out Of ICE Doc's Defamation Suit
Amazon.com LLC, Wondery LLC and Morbid: A True Crime Podcast LLC asked a Georgia federal judge on Friday to dismiss a former immigration prison doctor's lawsuit alleging he was defamed by the release of a true-crime podcast episode that accused him of performing forced hysterectomies on detainees.
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June 03, 2024
Ex-SoftBank GC Joins Foley & Lardner As Partner In SF
Foley & Lardner LLP has hired SoftBank Investment Advisers' former general counsel, who has over a decade of experience in private practice and serving as in-house counsel overseeing SoftBank's legal team, which structured and monitored more than 300 portfolio companies worth more than $130 billion.
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June 03, 2024
Jury Trials Dwindle In State Courts; Fall Started Before COVID
Jury trials have continued to "vanish" from state courts, despite seeing a slight bump following the pandemic shutdowns, with 2021 seeing fewer than half the number of jury trials as 2019 and one-third the number held in 2007, according to a new report from the National Center for State Courts.
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June 03, 2024
House COVID Panel Questions Fauci Over Pandemic Origins
Anthony Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease responsible for overseeing the pandemic response, was pressed by a U.S. House COVID-19 panel Monday about recent allegations that a senior official tried to evade open records laws regarding the origins of the pandemic.
Expert Analysis
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Tylenol MDL Highlights Expert Admissibility Headaches
A New York federal court's decision to exclude all plaintiff experts in a multidistrict litigation concerning prenatal exposure to Tylenol highlights a number of expert testimony pitfalls that parties should avoid in product liability and mass tort matters, say Rand Brothers and Courtney Block at Winston & Strawn.
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PE-Healthcare Mergers Should Prepare For Challenges
State and federal regulators are increasingly imposing new requirements on healthcare transactions involving private equity partners, with mergers that would have drawn little scrutiny a few years ago now requiring a multijurisdictional risk analysis during the deal formation process, say attorneys at Stinson.
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Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert
As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Online Portal Helps Fortify Feds' Unfair Health Practices Fight
The Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently launched an online portal where the public can report potentially unfair healthcare practices, effectively maximizing enforcers' abilities to police anti-competitive actions that can drive up healthcare costs and chill innovation, say attorneys at Seyfarth.
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Series
Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic
Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Art Of Asking: Leveraging Your Contacts For Referrals
Though attorneys may hesitate to ask for referral recommendations to generate new business, research shows that people want to help others they know, like and trust, so consider who in your network you should approach and how to make the ask, says Rebecca Hnatowski at Edwards Advisory.
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Wave Of Final Rules Reflects Race Against CRA Deadline
The flurry of final rules now leaping off the Federal Register press — some of which will affect entire industries and millions of Americans — shows President Joe Biden's determination to protect his regulatory legacy from reversal by the next Congress, given the impending statutory look-back period under the Congressional Review Act, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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McKesson May Change How AKS-Based FCA Claims Are Pled
The Second Circuit’s analysis in U.S. v. McKesson, an Anti-Kickback Statute-based False Claims Act case, provides guidance for both relators and defendants parsing scienter-related allegations, say Li Yu at Dicello Levitt, Ellen London at London & Stout, and Erica Hitchings at Whistleblower Law.
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Series
Being An Equestrian Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Beyond getting experience thinking on my feet and tackling stressful situations, the skills I've gained from horseback riding have considerable overlap with the skills used to practice law, particularly in terms of team building, continuing education, and making an effort to reset and recharge, says Kerry Irwin at Moore & Van Allen.
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Considering CGL Defense For Social Media Addiction Claims
A recent lawsuit filed in California state court against Meta seeks damages from technology companies for the costs of treating children allegedly suffering from social media addiction, but the prospects of defense coverage under commercial general liability insurance policies for a potential new wave of claims look promising, say Craig Hirsch and Tae Andrews at Pasich.
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4 Ways To Refresh Your Law Firm's Marketing Strategy
With many BigLaw firms relying on an increasingly obsolete marketing approach that prioritizes stiff professionalism over authentic connection, adopting a few key communications strategies to better connect with today's clients and prospects can make all the difference, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law.
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9th Circ. Ruling Puts Teeth Into Mental Health Parity Claims
In its recent finding that UnitedHealth applied an excessively strict review process for substance use disorder treatment claims, the Ninth Circuit provided guidance on how to plead a Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act violation and took a step toward achieving mental health parity in healthcare, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.
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Breaking Down DOJ's Individual Self-Disclosure Pilot Program
The U.S. Department of Justice’s recently announced pilot program aims to incentivize individuals to voluntarily self-disclose corporate misconduct they were personally involved in, complementing a new whistleblower pilot program for individuals not involved in misconduct as well as the government's broader corporate enforcement approach, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.
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Ch. 11 Case Shows Why Plan Acceptance Procedures Are Key
Sunland Medical's recent liquidation plan proposal is an important example of how top-notch judges and attorneys propose and analyze complex issues during the confirmation process, and the bankruptcy court was forward-thinking to consider the implications of such proposed treatment in the face of the Bankruptcy Code, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.