HHS Defends Move To Limit Noncitizen Medicaid Benefits

By Ganesh Setty

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has urged a Washington federal court not to block provisions in the 2025 federal budget bill generally denying Medicaid benefits to noncitizens receiving supplemental security income, countering claims of conflicting statutory language.

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Medical Orgs Target Rule On Medicaid Work 'Frailty' Exclusion

By Gianna Ferrarin

Federal regulation implementing a statutory "medical frailty" exclusion from Medicaid work requirements violates the Administrative Procedure Act, burdens healthcare providers and threatens to cause millions of people to lose their coverage, medical groups told a Maryland federal court in a complaint.

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HHS Can Claw Back $195M In Medicaid Payments From Mich.

By Danielle Ferguson

A D.C. federal judge on Monday said Michigan must return almost $200 million in Medicaid payments made to two state-operated psychiatric facilities, agreeing with a finding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' appeals board that the institutions did not meet federal requirements.

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Ex-NFL Player Gets New Trial In $328M Medicare Fraud Case

By Elaine Briseño

A Texas federal judge has granted a new trial for a former NFL player convicted in a $328 million Medicare billing scheme, finding that the government presented unreliable testimony and did not identify the alleged lies the defendant used to influence physicians.

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Fla. Judge Keeps Publix Autism Claims Dispute In Fed. Court

By David Minsky

A Florida federal judge has denied a medical services provider's bid to send its lawsuit alleging that Publix Super Markets Inc. underpaid billing claims for children's autism healthcare back to state court, saying their claims are preempted by a federal law regulating employee benefits plans. 

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Ill. Court Won't Undo $41M Stroke Malpractice Verdict

By Mike Curley

An Illinois appeals panel won't upend a $41 million verdict against OSF Healthcare System in a suit over a man's debilitating stroke, saying Illinois law tolls the statute of limitations based on the plaintiff's disability, regardless of if his wife or attorneys could have filed suit.

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Mich. Orthodontics Worker's Race Harassment Claims Survive

By Melanie Dorsey

A former employee of a Michigan orthodontics practice can take to trial her allegations that a co-worker created a hostile work environment by repeatedly using language mocking slavery, although a federal judge tossed her race discrimination and retaliation claim.

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Target Says It Had No Duty To Investigate Formula For Taint

By Mike Curley

Target Corp. is again urging a Washington federal court to throw out a couple's claims that it sold tainted baby formula that gave their child infant botulism, saying it's protected by state law and had no duty to independently investigate its suppliers.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court this past week dismissed a challenge to Alteryx Inc.'s $4.4 billion take-private sale, resolved a fight over the removal of a security technology company's director and declined to let Empery Digital Inc. immediately appeal a proxy contest ruling.

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Mich. Judge Drops State Claims In Dental Practice Suit

By Susan Smiley

A Michigan federal judge said Monday that he is dropping state law claims from a Medicaid fraud suit filed against a group of dental offices, citing a strong potential for jury confusion, and will only consider federal law claims.

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Moderna Says Sanofi Wants To 'Unjustly Profit' In Vax IP Suit

By Dani Kass

Sanofi's patent infringement suit against Moderna is an attempt to "unjustly profit" from the latter's COVID-19 vaccines after Sanofi was unable to produce its own, Moderna has told a New Jersey federal court.

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Care Facility Not Covered In Elder Abuse Suits, Insurer Says

By Hope Patti

A Hanover Insurance unit told a Pennsylvania federal court that it has no duty to defend or indemnify a memory care facility or its operators and staff members in a number of underlying state court suits alleging the abuse of residents with dementia.

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AI-Native Healthcare Service Co. Says Rival Copied 'N' Logo

By Gina Kim

Nitra Inc., an artificial intelligence-native all-in-one platform that provides fintech related services helping healthcare practices save time and money, accused a rival company of impermissibly using a "strikingly and confusingly similar" design mark for the stylized letter "N," according to a trademark infringement action filed Friday in California federal court.

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Brief

Cigna Wins $1.8M In Fees After Payment Patent Fight

By Adam Lidgett

A Texas federal magistrate judge has awarded Cigna Corp. nearly $1.8 million in legal fees in a case where it was cleared of infringing a card payment patent, just days after he said a shopping mall owner and gift card company were also entitled to fees in the legal battle.

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Brief

Swedish Health's $86M Wage Deal Nets Attys $25.8M In Fees

By Ben Adlin

Swedish Health Services' $86 million settlement to end workers' class action suit over alleged wage and meal break violations will include a $25.8 million payout for the plaintiffs' attorneys, according to a Washington state judge's order giving final approval to the deal.

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Smart-Ring Maker Oura Launches $2.1B IPO Plan

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Fitness-tracking ring maker Oura on Monday unveiled a target price range for its public debut, telling the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it plans to raise roughly $2.1 billion.

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Telix Pharma Bets Up To $2.3B For ITM In Radiopharma Push

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. on Monday unveiled plans to acquire ITM Isotope Technologies Munich SE in a deal worth up to $2.3 billion that was built by three law firms.

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How Cannabis Rescheduling Is Reshaping Bankruptcy

As broader cannabis rescheduling awaits a recommended decision, cannabis companies continue to test the boundaries of the Bankruptcy Code, with the recent Cannabist Chapter 15 recognition order suggesting that governmental resistance may be reduced in future filings, say attorneys at Thompson Coburn.

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Seyfarth Says Data Breach Exposed Social Security Numbers

By Hailey Konnath

Seyfarth Shaw LLP has disclosed a recent data breach that exposed the names and Social Security numbers of at least 300 individuals, according to notices filed with the Texas and California attorneys general.

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Meta Celebrates 'Abuse' Of Atty-Client Privilege, Judge Told

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge ordered Meta on Tuesday to rereview privilege designations on 300 documents in social media addiction litigation, after plaintiffs' lawyers cited a "culture of privilege abuse" epitomized by Instagram swag hats embroidered with "a/c priv" — the shorthand used to log withheld documents.

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Mich. Fed. Judge On 1-Year Leave Over Drunken Driving Case

By Jack Karp

U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Ludington is taking a one-year paid leave of absence from the bench following his misdemeanor conviction for drunken driving, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan announced Tuesday.

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Womble Bond Can't Quit Dutch Client With TM Trial Looming

By Hayley Fowler

Womble Bond Dickinson can't withdraw from a trademark feud that's dragged on for more than five years between U.S. and Dutch software companies, a North Carolina federal judge ruled, saying the firm's exit at this late stage "would be completely disruptive."

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