Policy & Compliance

  • February 18, 2025

    FCA Claims Surge As Whistleblowers Eye Pandemic Spending

    The historic influx of federal spending on pandemic relief and infrastructure projects helped fuel a record-breaking wave of whistleblower lawsuits launched under the False Claims Act last year, attorneys say, creating a surge in litigation unlikely to recede anytime soon.

  • February 18, 2025

    In Rare Move, Trump Backs Biden War On Medicare Brokers

    Though the Trump administration has changed direction on a range of legal positions taken by the Justice Department under Biden, it appears to be staying the course on Biden's efforts to stop health insurance companies from paying agents to guide seniors to certain Medicare Advantage plans.

  • February 18, 2025

    Georgia Justices Revive Defamation Suit Against Atty

    An orthopedic surgeon in Georgia will get another chance to prove he was defamed by a defense attorney, after the Supreme Court of Georgia found a state appellate court mistakenly used the well-known "actual malice" standard to toss the case instead of the relevant state law standard.

  • February 18, 2025

    Boston Children's Hospital Settles Retirement Plan Fee Suit

    Boston Children's Hospital has settled a suit with a proposed class of participants in its $1.1 billion retirement plan who alleged the hospital allowed excessive fees.

  • February 14, 2025

    FTC's Ferguson, PBMs Agree: Nix Leader Removal Safeguards

    Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson offered his own support for enabling the president to readily fire independent agency commissioners at the FTC and beyond, a day after pharmacy benefit managers cited the new U.S. Department of Justice policy in their own battle with the FTC.

  • February 14, 2025

    Trump Admin To Cut Thousands Of Federal Health Employees

    The Trump administration has started to cut thousands of federal healthcare employees, following through on its promises to shrink government and enact mass changes to agencies that oversee the health of millions of Americans.

  • February 14, 2025

    VA Fires More Than 1,000 As Part Of Trump Cuts

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said it dismissed more than 1,000 probationary employees Thursday, part of a wave of layoffs sweeping across federal agencies as the Trump administration pursues "large-scale" cuts to the government workforce.

  • February 14, 2025

    Mich. Abortion Provider Rule Not Evidence-Based, Judge Told

    A professor of midwifery testified Friday that abortions can be safely performed by nondoctor clinicians, on the second day of a trial to determine if certain abortion regulations in Michigan have unconstitutionally limited access to the procedure.

  • February 14, 2025

    Drug Costs, State Laws Fuel Push For Fed. Action On PBMs 

    Skyrocketing prescription drug costs and a proliferation of state laws are driving renewed calls from employers and benefit plan administrators for Congress to enact federal legislation changing how pharmacy benefit managers do business, experts say.

  • February 14, 2025

    Judge Upholds Pay-For-Delay Ban Law, But Only In Calif.

    A California federal judge has upheld part of a new state law that the Association for Accessible Medicines alleged unlawfully restricted "reverse payment" settlements between makers of brand-name and generic drugs, finding that the law's attempt to regulate deals outside of California runs afoul of the Constitution, but is otherwise valid.

  • February 14, 2025

    2nd Judge Blocks Trump Trans Health Order, Chides DOJ Atty

    A Washington federal judge put a second temporary block on President Donald Trump's executive order targeting funding for gender-affirming care for people younger than 19, at a Seattle hearing where the judge said she was extremely frustrated with a federal government attorney's inability to answer questions about the order's discriminatory impact on transgender youth.

  • February 13, 2025

    UnitedHealth Can't Escape All Claims In AI Denial Suit

    A Minnesota federal judge Thursday allowed Medicare Advantage patients and the estates of deceased enrollees to pursue breach of contract claims against UnitedHealth over its alleged use of AI to override physician recommendations, finding they are not preempted by the Medicare Act, but tossed others by holding they are preempted.

  • February 13, 2025

    Mich. Abortion Laws Hinder Access, Clinic Director Testifies

    The director of an abortion clinic testified on Thursday that Michigan's waiting period and mandatory counseling requirement for abortion services have forced the clinic to turn away patients and delay their care, kicking off a trial to determine if the policies should be struck down.

  • February 13, 2025

    Old Dominion Worker's Gender-Affirming Care Suit Dropped

    A transgender woman participating in an Old Dominion employee health plan agreed to drop her suit alleging she was wrongly denied gender-affirming care coverage for facial hair removal after a Washington federal judge dismissed the case in January, citing a settlement of the dispute.

  • February 13, 2025

    Maryland Judge Blocks Trump's Orders On Trans Healthcare

    A Maryland federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from restricting gender-affirming care for people under the age of 19 and required the administration to keep in place federal funding for healthcare providers that provide transgender care. 

  • February 13, 2025

    Telehealth Cos. Strike Deal To End Manager's Unpaid OT Suit

    A Florida federal judge signed off Thursday on a nearly $15,000 settlement that resolves a former manager's lawsuit accusing two telehealth companies of misclassifying her as overtime-exempt and causing her to lose out on extra wages.

  • February 13, 2025

    Buchanan Adds Healthcare Shareholder From Michael Best

    Courtney Tito, a new healthcare shareholder at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney LLP, told Law360 Pulse in an interview Thursday that her time in Baghdad as one of the only women attorneys helping to draft judicial legislation and amend Iraq's Constitution taught her to be an effective attorney.

  • February 13, 2025

    Small But Mighty Busy: 1st Circ. A Hub For Anti-Trump Suits

    The Boston-based First Circuit will play an outsize role in litigation challenging the aggressive start to President Donald Trump's second administration, but the liberal stronghold's philosophic divergence with the U.S. Supreme Court may make any victories fleeting.

  • February 13, 2025

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Confirmed, Sworn In As HHS Secretary

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is officially the nation's top healthcare official.

  • February 12, 2025

    RI Judge Won't Pause Order To Unfreeze Funds Amid Appeal

    A Rhode Island federal judge refused Wednesday to pause a court order blocking a freeze on funding for federal grants and programs while the Trump administration appeals the ruling to the First Circuit.

  • February 12, 2025

    Tribal Healthcare In Danger Due To Hiring Freeze, Letter Says

    The top Democratic ranking members for subcommittees that oversee federal funding for the Indian Health Service are demanding the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services intervene to stop cuts to the agency's workforce, saying without it Indigenous communities' access to needed services is in jeopardy.

  • February 12, 2025

    House GOP Eyes Medicaid Cuts, Work Requirements

    House Republicans set their sights on potential cuts and changes to Medicaid on Wednesday, arguing Congress and Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency should target improper payments, institute work requirements and repeal a Biden-era rule that made enrolling in the federal healthcare program easier. 

  • February 12, 2025

    Tobacco Fee Couldn't Have Injured Worker, Campbell's Says

    The Campbell's Co. urged a New Jersey federal court to toss a suit from a former worker alleging the company's tobacco-free wellness program is violating federal benefits law by making workers who use tobacco pay more for health insurance, arguing the ex-employee can't bring his claims because he never enrolled in the program.

  • February 12, 2025

    States Can't Halt Funding Ban On Trans Care, DOJ Tells Court

    Washington, Minnesota and Oregon can't block a White House executive order that cuts off federal funding for gender-affirming care for minors, President Donald Trump's administration told a Washington federal judge, arguing that the states' suit is premature and that the president has acted within his powers.

  • February 11, 2025

    Novo Nordisk Mostly Escapes Insulin Pen Contamination Suit

    Novo Nordisk has, for now, beaten much of a Connecticut-based hospital's federal lawsuit seeking to hold it financially responsible for the $1 million settlement the hospital paid to patients potentially exposed to blood-borne infections after the medical staff used the pharma company's product.

Expert Analysis

  • OIG Report Has Clues For 2024 Healthcare Fraud Enforcement

    Author Photo

    A recent report from the Health Department's Office of the Inspector General reveals healthcare fraud and abuse enforcement trends that will continue in 2024, from increased telehealth oversight to enhanced policing of managed care, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • FOIA Exemption Questions On Redacted HHS Cannabis Letter

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' recent recommendation letter concerning the rescheduling of cannabis was heavily redacted, and based on an analysis on the applicability of Freedom of Information Act Exemption 5 to the letter, it's likely that we will see successful legal challenges to those redactions, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • A Primer On New Calif. Health Transaction Reporting Rules

    Author Photo

    New California regulations regarding the reporting of certain transactions involving healthcare entities, which took effect on Jan. 1, address some industry feedback about overly broad requirements but still leave several areas of concern, says Andrew Demetriou at Husch Blackwell.

  • In The CFPB Playbook: Rulemaking Rush Before Election Year

    Author Photo

    In this quarterly Consumer Financial Protection Bureau activity recap by former bureau personnel, attorneys at McGuireWoods explain the regulator's recent push to finalize new rules about data aggregators, digital payment apps and more before the election-year Congressional Review Act window opens.

  • What The Law Firm Of The Future Will Look Like

    Author Photo

    As the legal landscape shifts, it’s become increasingly clear that the BigLaw business model must adapt in four key ways to remain viable, from fostering workplace flexibility to embracing technology, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.

  • 4 PR Pointers When Your Case Is In The News

    Author Photo

    Media coverage of new lawsuits exploded last year, demonstrating why defense attorneys should devise a public relations plan that complements their legal strategy, incorporating several objectives to balance ethical obligations and advocacy, say Nathan Burchfiel at Pinkston and Ryan June at Castañeda + Heidelman.

  • Digging Into The Debate On FDA's Proposed Lab Test Rule

    Author Photo

    A proposed 10-word amendment from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration represents a sea change in device regulation as it would summarily end decades of FDA enforcement discretion for laboratory developed tests, and the public comments offer some insight into the future of this long-running saga, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • Law Firm Strategies For Successfully Navigating 2024 Trends

    Author Photo

    Though law firms face the dual challenge of external and internal pressures as they enter 2024, firms willing to pivot will be able to stand out by adapting to stakeholder needs and reimagining their infrastructure, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Consultants.

  • AI In Health Law: The Top Guest Articles Of 2023

    Author Photo

    As the use of artificial intelligence accelerated this year, Expert Analysis writers examined AI's significant impact on the healthcare sector, ranging from key compliance considerations for companies utilizing AI tools to regulators' efforts to keep up with rapidly evolving technologies.

  • The Most-Read Legal Industry Law360 Guest Articles Of 2023

    Author Photo

    A range of legal industry topics drew readers' attention in Law360's Expert Analysis section this year, from associate retention strategies to ethical billing practices.

  • Inside Higher Education's New FCA Liability Challenges

    Author Photo

    As the educational sector expands its use of government funding, schools are at increased risk under the False Claims Act, but recent settlements offer valuable lessons about new theories of liability they may face and specific procedures to reduce their exposure, say James Zelenay and Jeremy Ochsenbein at Gibson Dunn.

  • AI Executive Order's Life Science, Healthcare Industry Effects

    Author Photo

    The recent White House executive order to manage risks associated with artificial intelligence includes provisions specific to healthcare and life sciences that merit special attention, including transparency, human oversight of AI output, and real world performance monitoring, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • HHS Advisory Highlights Free Product Inducement Risks

    Author Photo

    A recent U.S. Department of Health and Human Services advisory opinion highlights concerns that valuable free products and other inducements may influence patients and providers to choose one manufacturer’s product over another, notwithstanding that such free healthcare products may be a benefit, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.