Policy & Compliance

  • May 12, 2026

    A Battle Bigger Than Abortion Pills On Deck At High Court

    The outcome of the latest abortion clash at the high court could reach well beyond mifepristone access and make other federal policy changes on hot-button or divisive issues more vulnerable to state challenges.

  • May 12, 2026

    Texas AG Targets CVS DEI Program, Threatens Fraud Probe

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday warned CVS Health its diversity, equity and inclusion program for suppliers may violate state and federal antidiscrimination laws and gave the company 14 days to respond or risk a Medicaid fraud investigation.

  • May 12, 2026

    A Look At 'Most Favored Nation' Drug Pricing One Year Later

    A year ago, President Donald Trump signed a wide-ranging executive order to deliver on a longtime goal of his: making drugs cheaper for Americans. Here is where his "Most Favored Nation" drug-pricing program stands now.

  • May 12, 2026

    Makary Out As FDA Commissioner, Trump Says

    U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary is departing the agency, President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday, bringing to an end a tumultuous, one-year run as one of the nation's top health officials.

  • May 11, 2026

    Wash. Says Novartis Isn't Harmed By 340B Drug Pricing Law

    Washington is objecting to Novartis' attempt to block a state law that expands the discounts the drugmaker must provide under the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program, telling a federal court that worry about losing money doesn't constitute irreparable harm.

  • May 11, 2026

    Transgender Minor Patients Seek To Block DOJ Subpoenas

    A group of families asked a Maryland federal judge over the weekend to block the U.S. Department of Justice from obtaining private medical records of thousands of transgender minors across the country, saying subpoenas sent to medical providers violate their privacy.

  • May 11, 2026

    NYC Sanctioned For Sluggish Discovery In IVF Sex Bias Suit

    A federal judge sanctioned New York City on Monday for its lethargic discovery responses in a proposed class action claiming a municipal health plan unlawfully blocked gay men from receiving in vitro fertilization coverage, ordering the city to reimburse the couple leading the suit for their efforts to obtain documents.

  • May 11, 2026

    Justices Extend Stay On 5th Circ. Mifepristone Decision

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday extended a stay that preserved, for now, telehealth access to the abortion medication mifepristone.

  • May 11, 2026

    Plaintiffs' Attys Sanctioned In Tylenol MDL, Sparking Appeal

    A New York federal court sanctioned a plaintiffs' firm and its co-founder in federal multidistrict litigation by families alleging that prenatal exposure to acetaminophen can cause autism, saying they improperly shared confidential information from the case in related state court actions.

  • May 11, 2026

    Agencies Pitch Employers Offering Voluntary Fertility Benefits

    Federal agencies overseeing employer-provided health coverage proposed new rules aimed at expanding workers' access to coverage for infertility treatments and related health conditions by letting employers offer voluntary fertility health benefit policies for procedures such as in vitro fertilization.

  • May 08, 2026

    FTC's Gender-Care Probe Likely Retaliatory, Judge Says

    The Endocrine Society has convinced a D.C. federal judge that the Federal Trade Commission's motivation for targeting it with a subpoena was likely retaliation for the guidelines the nonprofit produced regarding gender-affirming care.

  • May 08, 2026

    Judge Probes Cert. For Diverse Worker Class In No-Poach Suit

    An Illinois federal judge considering whether to certify a class of former health care employees claiming their wages were suppressed by alleged no-poach agreements between DaVita, UnitedHealth Group's Surgical Care Affiliates and Tenet Healthcare Corp. unit United Surgical Partners International questioned Friday if the group of senior-level workers was too diverse for class treatment.

  • May 08, 2026

    Ohio Health System Looks To Toss DOJ Antitrust Case

    OhioHealth told a federal court Friday the antitrust case from the U.S. Department of Justice and state enforcers over the hospital system's contracts with insurers would limit competition, not restore it.

  • May 08, 2026

    4th Circ. Backs Toss Of Fired Worker's Whistleblower Suit

    The Fourth Circuit upheld the dismissal Friday of a home health salesperson's suit claiming he was fired out of retaliation for complaining about sexual comments made at a company picnic, ruling the lower court used the correct legal standard to throw out his case.

  • May 08, 2026

    Using FCA To Go After DEI Poses Legal Hurdles For DOJ

    The Trump administration's use of the False Claims Act to go after DEI policies diverges from past administrations' use of the civil fraud statute to tackle policy initiatives in key ways that may pose legal challenges to enforcement.

  • May 07, 2026

    NC Panel Rules Prior Verdict Bars Hospital Negligence Case

    A divided North Carolina state appeals court panel pulled the plug on a couple's negligence case against a local hospital, finding their suit is bound by a verdict in a separate, near-identical lawsuit in which a jury cleared the same hospital of wrongdoing.

  • May 07, 2026

    La. Says Mailed Abortion Pills Harm State Budget, Sovereignty

    The state of Louisiana on Thursday defended its standing to challenge telehealth access to the abortion medication mifepristone, telling the U.S. Supreme Court that it has suffered financial and other injuries as mail-order pills flood the state.

  • May 07, 2026

    EEOC Suit Over Blind Worker's Firing Heads To Trial

    A Tennessee federal judge cleared for trial a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit claiming a hospital facilities management company unlawfully fired a blind worker, saying a jury should decide if the company properly evaluated the employee's ability to do his job.

  • May 07, 2026

    AstraZeneca Reps Fight To Keep Opt-Ins In Pay Bias Suit

    Female pharmaceutical sales representatives in an AstraZeneca equal pay suit have urged an Illinois federal court to reject the company's bid to dismiss two dozen opt-in plaintiffs for refusing discovery, saying the women feared retaliation and career consequences.

  • May 07, 2026

    Hospital Suspects DOJ Is Forum Shopping For Trans Records

    Children's Hospital of Philadelphia asked a federal judge this week to reassert control over the U.S. Department of Justice's demand for records of gender-affirming care, fearing the government's withdrawal of its local appeal and a case filed against another hospital in Texas portended "forum shopping" for a friendlier court.

  • May 07, 2026

    Harvard Pilgrim Sued Over 'Ghost' Mental Health Network

    Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and its parent company have lured subscribers with a "ghost network" of mental health providers who are frequently out of network, don't accept the insurance or are not taking new patients, according to a proposed class action filed in Massachusetts state court.

  • May 06, 2026

    Calif. Justices Seem Divided On Gilead HIV Negligence Claim

    The California Supreme Court appeared split Wednesday over whether Gilead should face a negligence claim for allegedly withholding a safer HIV drug from the market to maximize profits from an older drug with more harmful side effects. 

  • May 06, 2026

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Hospital Workers' Vaccine Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit refused Wednesday to reopen a religious bias lawsuit accusing a Washington hospital of unlawfully denying employees' requests to avoid a COVID-19 vaccination mandate, finding that the medical center demonstrated that exemptions would've been too burdensome under a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision.

  • May 06, 2026

    Nursing Home Co. Can't Stave Off EEOC Harassment Trial

    A nursing facility operator can't dodge a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it fired an employee for complaining that her boss sexually harassed her, an Illinois federal judge said Wednesday, ruling a jury needs to assess whether the business acted out of retaliation.

  • May 05, 2026

    DC Circ. Judge Jabs Pharma Atty For 10 Minutes In Price Fight

    The first D.C. Circuit showdown in widespread drug pricing litigation Tuesday appeared unlikely to deliver a badly needed win to the pharmaceutical industry, as a top manufacturer's attorney faced a cool reception generally and an extended barrage of skepticism from one judge.

Expert Analysis

  • How Focus On Menopause Care Is Fueling Innovation, Access

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    Recent legislative developments concerning the growing field of menopause care are creating opportunities for increased investment and innovation in the space as they increase access to education and coverage, say attorneys at Kirkland.

  • FDA Commissioner Speech Suggests New Vision For Agency

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    In his first public remarks as U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner, Marty Makary outlined an ambitious framework for change centered around cultural restoration, scientific integrity, regulatory flexibility and selective modernization, and substantial enforcement shifts for the food and tobacco sectors, say attorneys at Arnall Golden.

  • Customs Fraud Enforcement In The Age Of Tariffs

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    In the wake of the Trump administration’s new approach toward tariffs, two recent Justice Department developments demonstrate aggressive customs fraud enforcement, with the DOJ emphasizing competitive harm to American businesses, and signaling that investigations will likely involve both civil and criminal enforcement tools, say attorneys at Bernstein Litowitz and London & Naor.

  • Legal Risks For Providers Discussing Psychedelic Therapies

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    The emergence of psychedelic therapies as potential treatments for mental health conditions and other ailments continues to garner significant attention, but the legal landscape surrounding discussions and referrals remains fraught with complexity, creating potential risks for healthcare providers and institutions, says Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell.

  • How NY's FAIR Act Mirrors CFPB State Recommendations

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    New York's proposed FAIR Business Practices Act, which targets predatory lending and junk fees, reflects the Rohit Chopra-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recommendations to states in a number of ways, including by defining "abusive" conduct and adding a new right to file class actions, says Christian Hancock at Bradley Arant.

  • A Breakdown Of Trump's Order On Drug Pricing

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    The Trump administration may attempt to effectuate through rulemaking a recently issued executive order on lowering drug prices, which would likely have an adverse effect on stakeholders and trigger litigation, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Takeaways From DOJ's 1st Wage-Fixing Jury Conviction

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    U.S. v. Lopez marked the U.S. Department of Justice's first labor market conviction at trial as a Nevada federal jury found a home healthcare staffing executive guilty of wage-fixing and wire fraud, signaling that improper agreements risk facing successful criminal prosecution, say attorneys at McGuireWoods.

  • Deregulation Memo Presents Risks, Opportunities For Cos.

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    A recent Trump administration memo providing direction to agencies tasked with rescinding regulations under an earlier executive order — without undergoing the typical notice-and-review process — will likely create much uncertainty for businesses, though they may be able to engage with agencies to shape the regulatory agenda, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • The IRS Shouldn't Go To War Over Harvard's Tax Exemption

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    If the Internal Revenue Service revokes Harvard's tax-exempt status for violating established public policy — a position unsupported by currently available information — the precedent set by surviving the inevitable court challenge could undercut the autonomy and distinctiveness of the charitable sector, says Johnny Rex Buckles at Houston Law Center.

  • New Hospice Regulations Should Enforce Core Principles

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    As the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General prepares to research and expand on oversight of Medicare hospice care, the OIG should keep in mind certain core principles, such as an emphasis on preventing the entry of hospices that raise red flags, says Bill Dombi at Arnall Golden.

  • 7 Considerations For Conducting Drug Clinical Trials Abroad

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    With continuing cuts to U.S. Food and Drug Administration staffing motivating some pharmaceutical companies to consider developing drugs abroad, it's important to understand the additional risks and compliance requirements associated with conducting clinical studies in other countries, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Compliance Lessons From Warby Parker's HIPAA Fine

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    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' civil money penalty against Warby Parker highlights the emerging challenges that consumer-facing brands encounter when expanding into healthcare-adjacent sectors, with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act compliance being a potential focus of regulatory attention, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • 5th Circ. Ruling Is Latest Signal Of Shaky Qui Tam Landscape

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    In his recent concurring opinion in U.S. v. Peripheral Vascular Associates, a Fifth Circuit judge joined a growing list of jurists suggesting that the False Claims Act's whistleblower provisions are unconstitutional, underscoring that acceptance of qui tam relators can no longer be taken for granted, say attorneys at Miller & Chevalier.