Policy & Compliance

  • June 29, 2026

    26 States Sue To Nix Medicaid Work Rule For Medically Frail

    More than two dozen states sued the Trump administration Monday in Massachusetts federal court in a bid to strike down new Medicaid work requirements for certain enrollees, saying the administration did not consider the consequences the requirements would have on vulnerable Medicaid enrollees.

  • June 29, 2026

    AstraZeneca To Pay $34M In Texas Kickbacks Settlement

    AstraZeneca has agreed to pay nearly $34 million to the state of Texas to put to rest allegations the pharmaceutical company gave kickbacks to providers for prescribing its drugs, many of which were covered by the Lone Star State's Medicaid program, according to an announcement made Monday.

  • June 29, 2026

    Hospital That Halted Gender Care Must Show Cause

    A Colorado state court judge issued a citation on Friday to Children's Hospital Colorado ordering it to show cause for why the hospital refuses to provide gender-affirming care to patients in violation of a preliminary injunction order issued by the Colorado Supreme Court. 

  • June 29, 2026

    Insurers Seek NJ Mass Tort For No Surprises Act Suits

    Five of the largest health insurers in the Garden State have asked the New Jersey Supreme Court to designate 160 pending cases seeking the enforcement of alleged independent dispute resolution payment determinations issued under the federal No Surprises Act as multicounty litigation, according to a notice to the Bar Association.

  • June 29, 2026

    8th Circ. Backs Tossing Ark. Worker's Pharmacy Network Suit

    The Eighth Circuit on Monday turned down an employee health plan participant's bid to revive a proposed class action alleging CVS Caremark unjustly enriched itself by failing to comply with Arkansas laws on pharmacy network adequacy, holding a lower court didn't err in tossing the dispute.

  • June 29, 2026

    Supreme Court To Review Wash. Youth Gender Care Law

    The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge to Washington state's law permitting shelters not to notify the parents of runaway teens who seek gender-affirming treatment, reviving a lawsuit that a Ninth Circuit panel unanimously shot down after a district judge found the plaintiffs could only show speculative injury.

  • June 29, 2026

    Justices Skip New York Health Workers' Fight Over Vax Rule

    The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to take up religious healthcare workers' challenge to a pandemic-era New York state policy requiring healthcare providers to make their employees get vaccinated against COVID-19, drawing a dissent from Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.

  • June 26, 2026

    Conn. Provider Must Share Takeover Data After $49M Verdict

    A Connecticut state court has ordered Westchester Medical Group PC to produce corporate takeover documents and leadership information as the court contemplates the provider's bid to set aside a $49 million jury verdict over claims its staff failed to diagnose a woman with cervical cancer.

  • June 26, 2026

    En Banc 4th Circ. Splits Over Stay Of DOD HIV Enlistment Ban

    The Fourth Circuit voted en banc Thursday to grant the federal government's bid to pause a lower court's permanent injunction blocking its policies excluding HIV-positive individuals from enlisting in the military, with a dissenting appellate judge writing that "the government is playing games!"

  • June 26, 2026

    DC Circ. Backs CMS In Medicare Advantage Rating Fight

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Friday upheld the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' calculation of a Louisiana insurer's Medicare Advantage star rating, rejecting the insurer's claims that the agency unlawfully included data from a contract that had been folded into another one.

  • June 26, 2026

    5 ERISA Cases To Keep An Eye On In The Second Half Of 2026

    A U.S. Supreme Court challenge to Intel Corp.'s 401(k) investment lineup tops the list of cases benefits attorneys will be watching this summer and fall, though appeals involving health plan tobacco fees, plan forfeiture spending and a potential Eleventh Circuit precedent shift are also top of mind. Here, Law360 looks at five ERISA cases that attorneys should have on their radar as 2026 rolls on.

  • June 26, 2026

    High Court To Issue Big Decisions In Term's Final Days

    As the U.S. Supreme Court enters the final days of its term, the justices still have several major decisions to issue, including some concerning birthright citizenship, the president's power to remove independent agency officials, transgender athletes and election rules. 

  • June 25, 2026

    Sandoz Still Can't Escape Generics Claims From GM, Others

    A Pennsylvania federal judge on Thursday declined to rethink her decision forcing Sandoz's Swiss parent company to face generic-drug price-fixing claims from major employers like American Airlines Inc. and General Motors LLC, saying the pharmaceutical company "has no new evidence" backing up its argument that the court lacks personal jurisdiction.

  • June 25, 2026

    Texas Faces Tough Questions In Tylenol Autism Appeal

    A Texas appellate court seemed skeptical Thursday of an argument that the parent entities of the company that sells Tylenol should have to defend claims that the pain reliever causes autism, suggesting that the companies don't have enough ties to Texas.

  • June 25, 2026

    Netflix Urges Justices Not To Disturb 9th Circ. ERISA Docs Ruling

    Netflix urged the U.S. Supreme Court Thursday not to take up a petition from an employee health plan participant who alleged the company failed to provide him access to plan documents in violation of federal benefits law, arguing the Ninth Circuit's ruling in the case should remain in place.

  • June 25, 2026

    Wash. Therapist Seeks Bar On 'Conversion Therapy' Ban

    A Washington therapist has urged a federal court to bar the state from enforcing its ban on what is commonly known as conversion therapy, arguing that a U.S. Supreme Court decision this year has "vindicated" his right to provide counseling targeted by the ban.

  • June 25, 2026

    Novo Nordisk Gets 401(k) Investment Suit Narrowed

    A New Jersey federal judge dismissed allegations accusing Novo Nordisk of unlawfully keeping underperforming investment options in its employee 401(k) plan, handing the pharmaceutical company a partial win by concluding workers hadn't identified comparable funds that performed significantly better.

  • June 24, 2026

    NY Judge Halts DOJ Bid For Trans Youth Medical Records

    A New York federal judge Wednesday barred the U.S. Department of Justice from seeking medical records of transgender patients who received gender-affirming care as minors in the wake of a grand jury subpoena to NYU Langone Health System, saying the government's investigation doesn't outweigh the patients' privacy interests.

  • June 24, 2026

    Delta Dental Says Wash. Antitrust Suit Echoes Faulty Claims

    Delta Dental of Washington said Tuesday an Evergreen State dentist targeting the dental insurer in a proposed antitrust class action has excluded its national affiliates from the case to "escape from a federal court's rejection of identical arguments" that the companies conspired to stifle insurer competition and suppress reimbursement rates.

  • June 24, 2026

    Wholesalers Say Novo Can't Duck GLP-1 Antitrust Suits

    Drug buyers want a New York federal judge to preserve proposed class claims accusing Novo Nordisk of paying Teva to delay generic competition with its Victoza GLP-1 drug, arguing that whatever the underlying deal was, no generic version materialized when it could have.  

  • June 24, 2026

    Doc's Defamation Claim Against Cigna Barred By ERISA

    In a precedential opinion dealing with an issue of first impression, the Third Circuit on Wednesday held that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act preempts a doctor's defamation claim against Cigna because the statements stemmed from the administration of his patients' health plans.

  • June 24, 2026

    11th Circ. Urged To Toss Convictions In $1.4B Hospital Fraud

    Two brothers convicted in a $1.4 billion scheme to bill insurers inflated rates for drug tests told the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday that there was insufficient evidence to support their convictions and that they should have been allowed an evidentiary hearing after potential juror misconduct emerged following the trial.

  • June 24, 2026

    3rd Circ. Extends Lenient Retaliation Test To ADA, FMLA Suits

    The Third Circuit declared Wednesday that the long-standing, worker-friendly standard used to evaluate Title VII retaliation claims also applies to analogue allegations under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act, kickstarting a former Marine's suit over a leaner-than-expected bonus and pay raise.

  • June 24, 2026

    UnitedHealthcare Turns Blame On MassHealth In Fraud Case

    UnitedHealthcare said it plans to defend itself against accusations that it overcharged Massachusetts for senior care, claiming the state's Medicaid program was not properly administered as it moved the case to federal court. 

  • June 23, 2026

    Kaiser Owes LA County Hospital $82M In Out-Of-Network Suit

    Kaiser Permanente's health coverage arm must pay more than $82 million to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center to cover unreimbursed emergency medical services, a California state judge ordered Tuesday, after a state appeals court backed a jury's verdict concerning payment for roughly 4,000 disputed medical service claims.

Expert Analysis

  • 5th Circ.'s Abortion Pill Order Is Shaky On Multiple Grounds

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    The Fifth Circuit's recent order in Louisiana v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, reinstating an in-person dispensing requirement for the abortion medication mifepristone, seems to turn federalism upside-down, and is also questionable for several other reasons, says Gregory Curtner at Curtner Law.

  • 5 Takeaways From Justices' Subpoena Fight Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in First Choice v. Davenport fortifies a line of First Amendment associational privacy cases stretching back nearly 70 years, and ensures that organizations subject to government demands for donor information have a meaningful federal forum in which to defend their constitutional rights, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Accelerated Psychedelic Therapy Pathways Require Caution

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    President Donald Trump's new executive order aiming to accelerate the approval of psychedelic drugs for the treatment of mental health disorders will likely bolster investigational psychedelic therapies, but parties within the psychedelic product supply chain will still need to prepare for potentially burdensome compliance requirements, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Health Cos. Must Act Quickly To Secure Digital Front Doors

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    A fast-approaching deadline will require health providers to implement digital accessibility standards to their websites, necessitating important compliance steps that will help to ensure equal access to online health services, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • How Oregon Ruling Affects Federal Gender Care Crackdown

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    In a favorable development for healthcare providers, an Oregon federal court recently vacated certain U.S. Department of Health and Human Services restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, but the government's broader campaign against this care, including proposed rulemaking and agency investigations, leaves significant uncertainty, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • NY Opioid Antagonist Mandate Leaves Employers Guessing

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    A recently enacted New York law will require employers that are federally mandated to maintain first-aid supplies to now include an opioid antagonist, but being that it is subject to a complicated Occupational Safety and Health Administration analysis, employers face several unanswered compliance questions, say attorneys at Conn Maciel.

  • Calif. Case Raises Questions For Medical Practice Investors

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    The California attorney general's amicus brief in Art Center v. WCE and the California Medical Association's response highlight how the California appeals court's ruling could significantly affect the structure and enforceability of succession arrangements in medical practice ownership, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Previewing FDA Preapproval Access In Psychedelics EO

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    The second of two pathways for psychedelic drug access outlined in President Donald Trump's recent executive order constitutes an unprecedented expansion of the Right to Try Act, which could fundamentally alter the psychedelic access landscape while presenting significant regulatory, operational and legal challenges, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Previewing FDA National Priority Vouchers In Psychedelics EO

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    President Donald Trump's recent executive order on psychedelic drug access represents a watershed moment in federal drug policy, but its significance lies in two distinct regulatory pathways, the first being the Commissioner's National Priority Vouchers, which offer a significant opportunity to compress U.S. Food and Drug Administration review, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell and Odette Hauke at Odette Alina.

  • AG Watch: Texas Charts A Course On Investigative Authority

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    The Texas Supreme Court's recent decision in Texas v. PFLAG affirmed, and arguably expanded, the Texas attorney general's civil investigative demand authority, providing a road map that other courts evaluating state attorney general CIDs may find instructive, amid a lack of precedent, say attorneys at Kelley Drye.

  • Initial Virginia AG Actions Signal Focus On Multistate Efforts

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    Now that Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones has reached the 100-day mark in office, his first set of actions reveals a clear preference for coalition with regional and national counterparts, which means the primary risk for businesses is no longer just the fact of enforcement, but the speed at which investigations can escalate, says Lauren Cooper at Hogan Lovells.

  • How CMS Fraud Priorities Complicate Provider Acquisitions

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    As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services steps up usage of its affiliates authority and post-transaction audits, parties contemplating the acquisition or sale of home health and hospice providers should take steps to avoid the potential suspension of Medicare billing privileges, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • Mapping Philly US Atty's White Collar Enforcement Push

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    Attorneys at Blank Rome discuss the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania David Metcalf’s commitments and priorities, survey early results from his first year, and suggest practical action items for companies operating under the office's jurisdiction.