More Healthcare Coverage

  • March 22, 2024

    Patient Asks NC Justices To Skip Immunity Review Of Virus Law

    A patient who claims she nearly died from a botched hysterectomy urged the North Carolina Supreme Court to ignore a hospital's bid to expand the immunity healthcare providers can receive under the state's COVID-19 emergency law, arguing the medical providers conflate common law and statutory immunity.

  • March 22, 2024

    Kaiser's Ozempic Coverage Denial Is Discriminatory, Suit Says

    Two Kaiser plans' refusal to cover new prescription weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy is "without any medical or scientific basis," a Washington state resident told a state court, alleging disability discrimination.

  • March 22, 2024

    Detroit Hospital, Deaf Patient Can't Avoid Trial In Disability Suit

    Detroit's Henry Ford Health System may face a jury trial in a deaf patient's lawsuit claiming she was denied an American Sign Language interpreter, with a Michigan federal judge refusing to grant summary judgment to either the hospital or the patient.

  • March 22, 2024

    6th Circ. Says Fired Doctor Got Enough Due Process

    The Sixth Circuit backed two Ohio healthcare companies and Wright State University's early wins against a former resident doctor's claims that she was improperly fired for unprofessional conduct, stating that all the parties involved engaged in "more than enough due process" before terminating her.

  • March 21, 2024

    MDL Claims Over Merck's Gardasil Vax Get Trimmed

    Pharmaceutical giant Merck need not face many of the claims by patients who allege their autoimmune conditions were caused by its HPV vaccine, a North Carolina federal judge overseeing multidistrict litigation ruled, saying the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act bars most claims made in the first two bellwethers.

  • March 21, 2024

    VA May Have Acted In Bad Faith On $30M Debt Collection Deal

    The U.S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals refused to toss a $29.6 million appeal accusing the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs of hampering a contractor's efforts to collect funds from outside insurers, saying the VA may have acted in bad faith.

  • March 20, 2024

    PTAB To Analyze Moderna COVID Vaccine Patents

    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has agreed to review two Moderna COVID-19 vaccine patents challenged by rivals Pfizer and BioNTech as having "unimaginably broad claims directed to a basic idea that was known long before."

  • March 20, 2024

    Defunct Philly Hospital Inks $32M End To Birth Injury Suit

    A defunct Philadelphia hospital has agreed to pay $32 million to resolve allegations that a delayed cesarean section caused a baby to suffer severe brain damage, Kline & Specter announced Wednesday.

  • March 19, 2024

    Healthcare Provider Says Optum Can't Duck Suit Or Arbitrate

    An East San Gabriel Valley nonprofit healthcare system has urged a California federal judge not to toss, or force into arbitration, its antitrust suit accusing Optum Health of lying to patients as part of broader efforts to force the system out of the local primary care physicians market.

  • March 19, 2024

    Nurses Snag Collective Cert. In OT Suit Against Insurance Co.

    A Maryland federal judge signed off on a collective of nurses in an overtime suit, turning down a health insurance company's request to use a stricter, one-step method to grant collectives under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

  • March 19, 2024

    Fla. Judge Inclined To Grant CNN's Costs In Defamation Suit

    A Florida judge said Tuesday he might trim parts of CNN's $320,000 request for attorney fees and costs incurred defending a defamation suit brought by a West Palm Beach pediatric heart surgeon but declined the doctor's request for a wholesale reduction. 

  • March 18, 2024

    Fla. Doc's Patient Info Subpoena Seeks Too Much, Court Says

    A Florida state trial judge shouldn't have approved subpoenas seeking a decade's worth of medical records from a patient who filed a malpractice suit against a doctor and hospital system, an appeals court has ruled, saying the defendants were allowed to cast "too wide a net."

  • March 18, 2024

    The Biggest Trade Secrets Awards In The Last 5 Years

    Trade secrets cases are having a moment in the spotlight, thanks to some gargantuan damages awards over the past five years and more flexibility for plaintiffs to argue for what they think they are owed.

  • March 15, 2024

    Ohio Obstetrician Keeps Trial Win In Suit Over Baby's Death

    An Ohio state appeals court has refused to overturn a trial win for an obstetrician accused of medical malpractice in the delivery of an infant who died shortly after birth, finding that the parents aren't allowed to question the doctor about whether his hospital privileges were pulled following the death.

  • March 15, 2024

    Ohio Ambulance Co. Says HR Firm Botched Tax Returns

    An Ohio ambulance company accused its human resources management firm of failing to accurately prepare and submit amended tax returns that would have allowed the company to claim pandemic-era tax credits, according to a complaint filed in an Ohio federal court.

  • March 15, 2024

    Pa. University Knocks Out Surgeon's $15M Sex Bias Win

    A Pennsylvania federal judge has erased a $15 million verdict won by a surgeon who said Thomas Jefferson University ignored his claims that a female resident sexually assaulted him, ruling that text messages he sent warranted a new trial.

  • March 15, 2024

    Conservative Law Group Asks Justices To Hear FDA Vape Suit

    A free-market advocacy group and a vape industry association are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to upend the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision denying a manufacturer permission to sell flavored vapes, arguing that the FDA is "moving the goalposts" when it comes to what kind of data is needed when applying.

  • March 14, 2024

    Cannabis Cos. Say Federal Position On Pot Is Irrational

    The federal ban on marijuana is plainly irrational and negatively affects operators in state-regulated cannabis markets, depriving them of their constitutional rights, a group of marijuana companies told a Massachusetts federal judge on Friday.

  • March 14, 2024

    Medical Waste Co. Beats Sales Reps' Equal Pay Suit

    An Illinois federal judge tossed a suit brought by four female sales representatives for a medical waste company claiming they were paid less than their male counterparts, ruling that the case couldn't proceed without more proof that prejudice caused the pay differences.

  • March 14, 2024

    NJ Urologist Keeps Win In Prostate Procedure Med Mal Suit

    A New Jersey appeals panel won't let a man revive his claims alleging a urologist botched a prostate procedure resulting in his inability to ejaculate, finding the trial court was correct in finding that his standard of care expert should be excluded.

  • March 13, 2024

    Ariz. Families Sue For Wrongful Death Amid Healthcare Scams

    The families of two Native American men are suing the state of Arizona and several of its entities, alleging that they're liable for their loved ones' deaths due to a lack of oversight on the "so-called sober living crisis" that led to one of the largest healthcare scandals in the state's history.

  • March 13, 2024

    Hospital Asks NC Justices To Take Up Virus-Law Immunity Case

    Healthcare providers are pressing the North Carolina Supreme Court to review a lower court's finding that the state's COVID immunity law isn't fatal to a medical malpractice suit, warning that the decision would have drastic consequences on a liability shield from pandemic-related suits.

  • March 13, 2024

    Judge Says COVID Test Suit Depends On Conn. Justices

     A Connecticut federal judge trimmed several claims from a $783,000 suit over a COVID-19 testing bill that a health plan administrator allegedly failed to pay, but declined to rule on certain state law issues until the state's highest court can shed light on the statutes in an upcoming ruling.

  • March 13, 2024

    Aetna Can't Avoid Bias Suit Over Fertility Treatment Policy

    Aetna must face a proposed class action alleging it readily covers fertility treatments for infertile heterosexual women but forces non-heterosexual women to spend thousands out of pocket before paying for their treatments, with a Connecticut federal judge saying it doesn't matter if the insurer didn't control the health plan's terms.

  • March 12, 2024

    NYC Orthodontics Chain Can't Shake Staff's OT Wage Suit

    A New York City chain of orthodontics practices must face the bulk of workers' claims that it denied adequate overtime compensation and targeted a former employee for retaliation after she complained about wage practices.

Expert Analysis

  • Fielding Remote Work Accommodation Requests Post-COVID

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    The Eighth Circuit's recent decision in Mobley v. St. Luke's may indicate how a court will analyze whether remote work is a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act in an instance where an employee successfully performed work remotely during the pandemic, providing a road map for employers, says Kenneth Winkler at Berman Fink.

  • Texas' Medical Cannabis Program May Soon Be Sittin' Pretty

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    A number of recently filed bills in Texas signal serious momentum for the state’s anemic medical cannabis program, and though its precise future is still hazy, a robust industry in the Lone Star State would have a profound impact on the national market, say Slates Veazey and Whitt Steineker at Bradley Arant.

  • The Terms Every Monitorship Agreement Should Include

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    Little of the recent discussion around corporate compliance monitorships has focused on how they should be structured, but drafting a clear and comprehensive agreement at the outset is crucial to maximizing a monitorship’s success, says Scott Garland at Affiliated Monitors.

  • Courts Must Apply Correct Causal Standard In Kickback Cases

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    Despite clear statutory language and supporting legislative history, the government and some courts have been incorrectly interpreting the Anti-Kickback Statute's "resulting from" language, which could lead to detrimental effects for innocent patients and physicians if not corrected, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Higher Ed Can't Recycle Cannabis Policies For Psychedelics

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    As efforts to legalize and decriminalize psychedelic substances proliferate, higher education must recognize the nuanced legal issues that distinguish these drugs from cannabis, and consider a unique approach to the possession, use and research of psychedelics on campus, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • Issues To Watch In Fla.'s Telehealth Genetic Counseling Bills

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    Two recently introduced Florida bills would expand the state’s telehealth statute to include genetic counseling services, and though they currently don’t have opposition, they may have to overcome data privacy and out-of-state licensing concerns, say Erika Alba and Jacqueline Acosta at Foley & Lardner.

  • Questions Surround FDA's Orphan Drug Exclusivity Approach

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    In light of a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration notice, which contrasts with an Eleventh Circuit ruling on orphan drug exclusivity, the exact scope of orphan drug exclusivity periods appears uncertain and companies may want to reconsider their strategies for requesting designations, say Jacqueline Berman and Nikita Bhojani at Morgan Lewis.

  • Preparing For An Era Of Regulated Artificial Intelligence

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    In light of developing regulatory activity aimed at governing the use of artificial intelligence, companies should implement best practices that focus on the fundamental principles that are driving regulators' actions, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Lessons On Prior Art From PTAB's Genetic Testing Decisions

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    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board's recent finding that none of the challenged claims in LabCorp v. Ravgen were unpatentable shows that practitioners should avoid cherry-picking prior art references, and know what the art does and doesn't teach, say Jameson Gardner and Thomas Irving at Finnegan.

  • Incorrect Inventorship On Patents Is A Tough Claim To Prove

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    The Federal Circuit's recent decision to reverse and remand a district court's ruling that patents were invalid in Plastipak Packaging v. Premium Waters highlights the difficulties of sustaining claims of misjoinder or nonjoinder of inventors as a strategy to invalidate patents, says Andrew Berks at Gallet Dreyer.

  • The Issues Shaping Labor Market Antitrust Litigation In 2023

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    Questions about whether traditional antitrust analysis should apply to labor market abuses will continue to define litigation over agreements restricting employment this year, as courts grapple with the sufficiency of pleadings, parties' evidentiary burdens, affirmative defenses and jury instructions, say Manly Parks and Randy Kim at Duane Morris.

  • How Ohio Software Ruling Implicates Crypto Insurance Claims

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    The Ohio Supreme Court's recent decision in EMOI Services v. Owners Insurance, holding that software can never be physically damaged, has limited precedential value for property claims, but serious implications for cases involving loss or damage to intangible assets like cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens, say Jane Warring and Shannon O’Malley at Zelle.

  • NY Adult Survivors Act Look-Back: What Orgs Must Know

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    With the look-back window for New York's Adult Survivors Act now open, survivors of past sexual abuse have a new opportunity to file civil claims — so organizations that could face litigation should take specific steps to ensure best practices both before and after lawsuits arise, say Michael Appelbaum and Christina Holdsworth at Goldberg Segalla.

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