Health

  • October 29, 2024

    Beyond Abortion, 7 Ballot Questions Set To Shape Care

    While reproductive rights have led the healthcare debate this election season, voters across the country will shape state policies on a number of other hot issues, including a Medicaid work requirement and coverage for IVF. Law360 Healthcare Authority looks at seven ballot measures that go beyond abortion.

  • October 29, 2024

    Pa. DA Says ATF's Pot Patients Ban Doesn't Fit With Bruen

    A Pennsylvania district attorney is urging a federal judge not to throw out his suit challenging a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives policy blocking medical cannabis patients from buying or owning firearms, saying the U.S. Supreme Court's recent precedent preempts the restriction.

  • October 29, 2024

    Warren Pushes FTC Chair To Probe Oncology Acquisitions

    Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday urged the Federal Trade Commission to scrutinize McKesson Corp.'s proposed $2.49 billion acquisition of a controlling stake in Core Ventures, and Cardinal Health's proposed $1.12 billion purchase of a controlling stake in Integrated Oncology, saying the deals would further consolidate the "already highly consolidated" oncology market.

  • October 29, 2024

    PBM Group Federal Affairs VP Joins Akin In Lobbying Role

    A former Capitol Hill health policy advocate who worked in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and guided federal and state stakeholders through the implementation of the Affordable Care Act has joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP's lobbying team.

  • October 29, 2024

    Senate Panel Targets 'Clever' Pharma Pricing

    The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday railed against drugmakers and pharmacy benefit managers for allegedly causing the high cost of prescription drugs, arguing that "Big Pharma" has used anticompetitive tactics through patenting to fleece American patients.

  • October 28, 2024

    Masimo Sues Founder Over Alleged 'Empty Voting' Scheme

    Masimo Corp. has sued its founder for allegedly conspiring with an investment firm and company stockholder to manipulate a shareholder vote in order to maintain his seat on the medical technology company's board of directors.

  • October 28, 2024

    Wash. AG Candidates Clash On Consumer Protection, Guns

    The candidates vying to replace Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who carved out a national reputation as an antitrust champion, present starkly different visions on whether to build upon his tenure or reverse course, clashing not just on consumer protection, but also gun safety and access to reproductive care.

  • October 28, 2024

    SEC Sues To Enforce Subpoena On Telehealth Co.

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a New York federal judge to order a weight loss-focused telehealth company to comply with a subpoena issued in connection with the SEC's investigation into whether the company violated federal securities laws.

  • October 28, 2024

    Ontrak Founder Can't Wipe Novel Insider Trading Verdict

    A California federal judge has upheld Ontrak founder Terren Peizer's first-of-its-kind insider trading conviction, holding that jurors had "more than enough evidence" to determine he based a $20 million share sale on nonpublic information that the health tech company was about to lose its biggest client.

  • October 28, 2024

    Consciousness Not A Factor In $15M Pain And Suffering Verdict

    A urological surgeon can't trim a $15 million jury verdict awarded to the wife of an octogenarian patient who died due to the doctor's alleged negligence, a Georgia state appeals court has ruled, rejecting arguments that a patient can't get pain and suffering damages because he was mostly unconscious.

  • October 28, 2024

    Gov't Says No Duty To Pay $69M In COVID Testing Claims

    The Health Resources and Services Administration has urged the Court of Federal Claims to toss a lawsuit alleging the agency owes a laboratory $69 million in unpaid claims under a COVID-19 program for the uninsured, saying there was no contractual duty to pay.

  • October 28, 2024

    Moderna Brass Hit With Investor Suit Over RSV Shot Claims

    Officers and directors of Moderna face shareholder derivative allegations that they overstated how effective the company's RSV vaccine candidate was as the pharmaceutical giant sought regulatory permission to expedite its development.

  • October 28, 2024

    Surge In Nicotine Fee Suits Shows Wellness Program Risks

    A recent crop of suits accusing large employers of violating nondiscrimination provisions in federal benefits law by making workers who use nicotine pay more for health insurance underscore the risk of using fees to offset healthcare costs, attorneys say. Here are five nicotine surcharge suits to keep an eye on.

  • October 28, 2024

    HHS Says In-Home Evals Raised Insurers' Medicare Payments

    Private Medicare insurers collected an estimated $4.2 billion in extra federal payments last year from in-home health assessments they conducted, even though the evaluations led to no treatment, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' internal watchdog.

  • October 28, 2024

    Conn. Healthcare Co.'s $1.5M Data Breach Deal Gets Final OK

    A Connecticut federal judge has given his final approval to a class action settlement that requires Merritt Healthcare Advisors to pay thousands of people whose personal information was exposed in a data breach.

  • October 28, 2024

    Mass. Court's Wiretap Ruling May Be Bad Omen For Plaintiffs

    A ruling by the Massachusetts high court rejecting wiretap claims over website operators' use of tracking software like Meta Pixel and Google Analytics shows the steep climb plaintiffs may continue to face as they try to apply older laws to modern technologies, experts told Law360.

  • October 28, 2024

    5th Circ. Affirms Texas Health Coordinator Is Not Tax-Exempt

    A Texas nonprofit corporation that coordinates healthcare mostly for privately insured patients does not qualify for tax-exempt status because its business fails to help the larger community, the Fifth Circuit ruled Monday in affirming a U.S. Tax Court decision.

  • October 28, 2024

    Hospital Wants NC County's 'Monopoly' Suit Tossed

    Owners of an Asheville, North Carolina, hospital accused of understaffing its emergency room and driving up wait times say the county suing them for unjust enrichment is actually trying to get paid twice for healthcare its emergency responders have already provided.

  • October 28, 2024

    Crown Settles Customer Dispute To Close $924M Revance Buy

    Revance Therapeutics has settled a distribution-related dispute with customer Teoxane SA, potentially clearing the path for its planned $924 million acquisition by skincare company Crown Laboratories. 

  • October 25, 2024

    NLRB Wins Injunction, Defeats Constitutional Claims In Mich.

    A Michigan federal judge handed the National Labor Relations Board two victories Friday in the agency's dispute with a hospital, ordering the hospital to resume recognizing the Service Employees International Union affiliate it ousted last year and rejecting the hospital's argument that the agency's structure is unconstitutional.

  • October 25, 2024

    Jury In Formula Trial Told Baby's Condition Likely Genetic

    An expert witness for Abbott and Mead Johnson in the first joint trial against the baby formula makers told a St. Louis jury Friday he believes the child at the center of the case has a genetic condition that's responsible for most of his intellectual impairment.

  • October 25, 2024

    NJ Ethics Board Faces Contempt Bid In Retaliation Fight

    Counsel for a New Jersey health official who claimed his firing during the COVID-19 pandemic was retaliatory asked a court to hold the State Ethics Commission in contempt for stalling discovery under the guise that the state health regulator initiated the termination, despite "well documented" evidence that it was the commission and Gov. Phil Murphy.

  • October 25, 2024

    Premera Rejection Seems Sparse, 9th Circ. Judges Say

    A Ninth Circuit judge pressed Premera Blue Cross on Friday to defend refusing coverage for a Washington teen's lengthy mental health residential treatment, questioning if the insurer engaged in a meaningful dialogue as required with the youth's family in letters explaining why the treatment was medically unnecessary.

  • October 25, 2024

    Tenn. Hospitals Want Former Execs Nixed From Kickback Row

    A hospital system on Friday urged a North Carolina federal court to dismiss whistleblower claims from former executives alleging the system excessively paid physicians to make referrals in order to receive Medicare and Medicaid money.

  • October 25, 2024

    2nd Circ. Says Man Can't Challenge Removal Over Atty Failure

    The Second Circuit on Friday denied a man's bid to reopen removal proceedings based on his former attorney's failure to submit important documents, saying the man should have provided evidence supporting his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel earlier.

Expert Analysis

  • Roundup

    After Chevron

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 36 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Navigating Scrutiny Of Friendly Professional Corps. In Calif.

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    In light of ongoing scrutiny and challenges to private equity participation in the California healthcare marketplace, particularly surrounding the use of the friendly professional corporation model, management services organizations should consider implementing four best practices, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Takeaways From New HHS Substance Use Disorder Info Rules

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    A new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services rule continues the agency's efforts to harmonize complex rules surrounding confidentiality provisions for substance use disorder patient records, though healthcare providers will need to remain mindful of different potentially applicable requirements and changes that their compliance structures may require, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Few Changes In ITC Rulemaking

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's opinion overruling the Chevron doctrine will have less impact on the U.S. International Trade Commission than other agencies administering trade statutes, given that the commission exercises its congressionally granted authority in a manner that allows for consistent decision making at both agency and judicial levels, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • Series

    Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

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    The second quarter of 2024 in California, which saw efforts to expand consumer protection legislation and enforcement actions in areas of federal focus like medical debt and student loans, demonstrated that the state's role as a trendsetter in consumer financial protection will continue for the foreseeable future, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

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    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • How Cannabis Rescheduling May Affect Current Operators

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    The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's proposal to reschedule marijuana to Schedule III provides relief in the form of federal policy from the stigma and burdens of Schedule I, but commercial cannabis operations will remain unchanged until the federal-state cannabis policy gap is remedied by Congress, say Meital Manzuri and Alexis Lazzeri at Manzuri Law.

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Air Ambulance Ruling Severely Undermines No Surprises Act

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    A Texas federal court's recent decision in Guardian Flight v. Health Care Service — that the No Surprises Act lacks a judicial remedy when a health insurer refuses to pay the amount established through an independent review — likely throws a huge monkey wrench into the elaborate protections the NSA was enacted to provide, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: June Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers two recent decisions from the Third and Tenth Circuits, and identifies practice tips around class action settlements and standing in securities litigation.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

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    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • Del. Bankruptcy Ruling Will Give D&O Insureds Nightmares

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    In Henrich v. XL Specialty Insurance, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court recently found that a never-served qui tam claim had been "brought" before a D&O policy's retroactive date, thereby eliminating coverage, and creating a nightmare scenario for directors and officers policyholders facing whistleblower claims, says David Klein at Pillsbury.

  • Opinion

    No Matter The Purdue Ruling, Mass Tort Reform Is Needed

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will soon issue its opinion in the bankruptcy of Purdue Pharma LP, and regardless of the outcome, it’s clear legal and policy reforms are needed to address the next mass tort, says William Organek at Baruch College.

  • How Congress Is Tackling The US Healthcare Shortage

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    With healthcare shortages continuing across the U.S. despite industry efforts to improve patient access to care, increased Medicare support for graduate medical education could be a crucial component of the solution, say Sarah Crossan and Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.

  • Opinion

    Why The Patent Eligibility Restoration Act Can Spur Progress

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    Patent practitioners have long wrestled with the effects of U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have muddied the waters of what can be patented, but the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act can change that, and those not involved with patents on a day-to-day basis can help get this act passed, says John White at Harness IP.

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