Policy & Compliance

  • March 17, 2026

    Ex-Database Administrator Settles OT Claim

    A former database administrator who accused Express Scripts and two other companies of misclassifying him as an independent contractor reached a $30,000 deal with the entities to settle his federal law claim, the parties told a New York federal court.

  • March 17, 2026

    State Lawmakers Take On Practice Limits: 3 Bills To Know

    Law360 Healthcare Authority looks at some of the latest moves by state lawmakers to relax practice restrictions in Florida, New York and Minnesota.

  • March 17, 2026

    Bipartisan Bill To Waive $100K H-1B Fee Gets AMA Backing

    Medical organizations and a bipartisan group of lawmakers are backing federal legislation introduced Tuesday that would exempt physicians and other healthcare workers from the Trump administration's $100,000 fee on H-1B visas.

  • March 16, 2026

    1st Circ. Affirms Block Of Trump's 'Unprecedented' Aid Freeze

    The First Circuit on Monday mostly upheld a lower court's order blocking the Trump administration from enacting a "sweeping and unprecedented categorical 'freeze' of federal financial assistance," ruling that the states involved in the suit will likely successfully show that the federal government acted arbitrarily and capriciously.

  • March 16, 2026

    Judge Tosses Kaiser Whistleblowers' Claims After $556M Deal

    A California federal court on Monday officially dismissed False Claims Act lawsuits from the federal government and three people alleging that Kaiser Permanente affiliates engaged in Medicare fraud, on the heels of Kaiser's $556 million settlement reached in January.

  • March 16, 2026

    Mich. Jury Awards $10M To Med Resident Fired During Leave

    A Michigan state jury has awarded more than $10 million to a former medical student who said she was fired from a hospital's OB-GYN residency program after being forced to take a required licensing exam while on maternity leave.

  • March 16, 2026

    HHS' Childhood Vaccine Policy Changes Put On Ice

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration's modified childhood vaccine schedule and put all decisions made by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s federal vaccine policy committee on hold, finding they veered sharply from normal procedure and likely violated the law.

  • March 16, 2026

    Mass. City Accused Of Bias In Mental Health 911 Response

    The city of Worcester, Massachusetts, was hit with a suit Monday claiming that its 911 response is inadequate and discriminatory towards people with mental disabilities because the armed police who usually show up are ill-equipped to deal with those calls and often make matters worse.

  • March 13, 2026

    'Swinging Dicks' Dissent Stirs Uproar Across 9th Circ. Bench

    A raunchy dissent in litigation over transgender spa patrons prompted dozens of Ninth Circuit judges to denounce the "vulgar barroom talk" of a colleague, who returned fire by ridiculing his peers for adopting the "fastidious sensibilities of a Victorian nun."

  • March 13, 2026

    4th Circ. Brings Back Allergan Medicaid Overcharging Suit

    A split Fourth Circuit panel on Friday revived a whistleblower suit accusing an Allergan Sales LLC predecessor of overcharging Medicaid by more than $680 million, saying the whistleblower plausibly alleged the company knowingly improperly aggregated discounts into "best prices" for drugs.

  • March 13, 2026

    Sandoz Appealing Ruling Over Amgen's Enbrel Biosimilar

    Sandoz Inc. is appealing after a Virginia federal court ruled it should have brought claims accusing Amgen of blocking competition for the Enbrel biosimilar in a previous patent dispute, according to a Friday notice. 

  • March 13, 2026

    Texas Justices Clear Way For State's Trans Care Probe

    An LGBTQ+ advocacy organization must produce documents as part of an investigation from the Texas attorney general's office into transgender treatments for minors, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on Friday, saying that the state's ban on gender-affirming care for minors is the law and must be followed. 

  • March 13, 2026

    EPA Aims To Lift Biden-Era Ethylene Oxide Limits

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Friday proposed rolling back limits on emissions of ethylene oxide, a carcinogenic chemical used in the sterilization of medical devices.

  • March 12, 2026

    Ariz. Docs Ink $4.75M FCA Deal Over Unnecessary Treatment

    An Arizona-based physician group that offers cardiology and vascular services has inked a $4.75 million settlement to resolve False Claims Act allegations they performed unnecessary vein ablations and submitted claims for payment to government healthcare programs for reimbursement, the U.S. Department of Justice said Thursday.

  • March 12, 2026

    Top Texas Court Upholds Death Sentence For ICU Nurse

    The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Thursday affirmed the death sentence of a former cardiovascular nurse convicted of intentionally murdering patients recovering from operations, finding that Texas prosecutors' accusation that defense counsel engaged in "misdirection and deception" was "mild."

  • March 12, 2026

    Wash. Justices OK Jury Instruction In TB Malpractice Case

    The Washington State Supreme Court declined Thursday to flip a family's loss in a case blaming an Evergreen State doctor for failing to address signs of an intestinal tuberculosis infection that led to a patient's death, rejecting a challenge to a jury instruction on the physician's exercise of judgment.

  • March 12, 2026

    Colo. Panel Clarifies Workers Comp Law On Maintenance Care

    In interpreting the Colorado Workers' Compensation Act, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled for the first time Thursday that employers and their insurers cannot limit maintenance medical benefits to any specific treatment in a final admission of liability.

  • March 12, 2026

    US Chamber Report Warns Of Risks To IP Protection

    While the U.S. has ranked at the top of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's list measuring how countries worldwide are enforcing intellectual property laws, the group said problems with free trade agreements and efforts to reduce pharmaceutical prices could cause problems on the horizon domestically.

  • March 12, 2026

    Doc's Hands Aren't Property, Texas Panel Rules In Death Suit

    A state-employed doctor's hands are not "tangible personal property," a Texas appeals court ruled Thursday, dismissing a wrongful death suit from the family of a patient who contracted a fatal infection during her hospital stay. 

  • March 11, 2026

    New Wyoming Abortion Law Faces Familiar Legal Challenge

    Just a day after it was signed into law, Wyoming's new anti-abortion law triggered a legal challenge from the same health clinic that successfully sued over the state's previous abortion limits.

  • March 11, 2026

    La. Fights Dismissal Bid In Abortion Regulation Dispute

    The state of Louisiana urged a federal court to deny motions by GenBioPro Inc. and Danco Laboratories seeking dismissal of its suit challenging federal regulation on mail-order abortion drugs, arguing it has established harms stemming from the regulations.

  • March 11, 2026

    Ohio Hospital Defeats DaVita's Dialysis Discrimination Suit

    An Ohio hospital and its health benefit plan did not discriminate against patients with end-stage renal disease by eliminating in-network coverage for dialysis, a federal court ruled, finding that dialysis provider DaVita Inc. failed to show the plan intended to harm participants.

  • March 11, 2026

    VA, DOJ Cut Deal To Make Attys Mental Health Guardians

    Under a new initiative, attorneys at the U.S. Department of Justice will serve as legal guardians for some homeless veterans, the Trump administration announced on Wednesday, though some veterans advocates expressed concern that the new program could involuntarily coerce veterans experiencing mental health issues into institutional care.

  • March 11, 2026

    Aetna Will Pay $117.7M To Resolve False Billing Suit

    Aetna Inc. has agreed to pay $117.7 million to settle claims that the company violated the False Claims Act by submitting, and failing to correct, false diagnosis codes for its Medicare Advantage plan customers in order to boost cash flow from the federal insurance program, the U.S. attorney's office in Philadelphia said Wednesday.

  • March 10, 2026

    A Look At The Real Impact Of The FTC's PBM Settlements

    It may all come down to the details in a landmark settlement between the Federal Trade Commission and one of the biggest pharmacy benefit managers in the U.S., as delayed timelines and a key carveout provision threaten to dampen sweeping changes to the larger system.

Expert Analysis

  • What To Expect For Stem Cell Regulation Under Trump Admin

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    The new administration's push for deregulation, plus the post-Chevron legal landscape, and momentum from key political and industry players to facilitate stem cell innovation may create an opportune backdrop for a significant reduction in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's regulatory framework for stem cells, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Importers Can Minimize FCA Risks Of Tariff Mitigation

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    False Claims Act risks are inherent in many tariff mitigation strategies, making it important for importers to implement best practices to identify and report potential violations of import regulations before they escalate, says Samuel Finkelstein at LMD Trade Law.

  • 10 Practical Takeaways From FDA's Biopharma AI Guidance

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    Recent guidance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration provides much-needed insight on the usage of artificial intelligence in producing information to support regulatory decision-making regarding drug safety, with implications ranging from life cycle maintenance to AI tool acquisition, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Lawmakers Shouldn't Overlook Rare Disease Therapies' Value

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    As the ORPHAN Cures Act is pending in Congress, policymakers assessing the value of certain drugs for price regulation should consider data beyond what is collected in clinical trials, say Alice Chen at the University of Southern California, and Molly Frean and Yao Lu at Analysis Group.

  • What Trump's Order Means For The Legal Status Of IVF

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    An executive order signed by President Donald Trump last month signals the administration's potential intention to increase protections for in vitro fertilization services, though more concrete actions would be needed to resolve the current uncertainty around IVF access or bring about a binding legal change, says Jeanne Vance at Weintraub Tobin.

  • Mitigating Tariff Risks For Healthcare In US And Canada

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    Healthcare stakeholders should take steps to evaluate the impact of cross-border tariffs, as the historically strong ties between Canada and the U.S. demonstrate the potential for real disruption and harm to the healthcare industry in both countries, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • What's At Stake In High Court Transgender Care Suit

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    The outcome of U.S. v. Skrmetti will have critical implications for the rights of transgender youth and their access to gender-affirming care, and will likely affect other areas of law and policy involving transgender individuals, including education, employment, healthcare and civil rights, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • 6 Laws Transforming Calif.'s Health Regulatory Framework

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    Attorneys at Hooper Lundy discuss a number of new California laws that raise pressing issues for independent physicians and small practice groups, ranging from the use of artificial intelligence to wage standards for healthcare employees.

  • Anticipating Calif. Oversight Of PE Participation In Healthcare

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    A new bill recently introduced in the California Senate revives last year's attempt to increase oversight of healthcare transactions involving private equity groups and hedge funds, meaning that attorneys may soon need to assess the compliance status of existing management relationships and consider modifying contract terms, says Andrew Demetriou at Husch Blackwell.

  • Considering The Future Of AI Regulation On Health Sector

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    As Texas looks to become the next state to pass a comprehensive law regulating artificial intelligence, the healthcare industry should consider how AI regulation will continue to evolve in the U.S. and how industry members can keep up with compliance considerations, say attorneys at Kirkland & Ellis.

  • What To Expect From 'Make America Healthy Again' Actions

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    The Make America Healthy Again Commission recently established by President Donald Trump and chaired by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will potentially bring energy and attention to important public health topics, and stakeholders should be aware of pathways for sharing their input and proactively informing proceedings, says Nicholas Manetto at Faegre Drinker.

  • How Citizen Petitions Have Affected Drug Competition

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    In light of recent citizen petitions and proposed legislation regulating such petitions, Omar Robles at Managing Health analyzes the statistics of the extent to which citizen petitions have been filed, and to what extent they have delayed competition in prescription pharmaceuticals.

  • Drug Kickback Ruling Will Make FCA Liability Harder To Prove

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    The First Circuit's ruling in U.S. v. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, requiring the government to prove but-for causation to establish False Claims Act liability based on violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, raises the bar for FCA enforcement and deepens a circuit split that the U.S. Supreme Court may need to resolve, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.