Policy & Compliance
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April 25, 2025
HHS Sued Over Withholding Of $65.8M In Title X Funding
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services unlawfully withheld $65.8 million in federal grants for critically needed family planning services, a nonprofit alleged in a suit filed Thursday in D.C. federal court, saying the withholding seemed to be based, in part, on grantees' support for diversity, equity and inclusion.
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April 25, 2025
Justices Want More Info On HHS Authority In Task Force Row
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ordered the federal government and a group of Texas businesses and individuals to compile more information as to whether the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services secretary has the authority to appoint members of a task force under the Affordable Care Act.
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April 25, 2025
Sutter Health To Pay $228M In Years-Old Antitrust Suit
A class of millions of health insurance premium payors asked a California federal judge Friday to greenlight an eleventh-hour $228.5 million settlement resolving their long-running claims that hospital chain Sutter Health drives up costs by pushing all-or-nothing network deals on insurers.
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April 25, 2025
Refusing Mental Healthcare Means Liability, Pa. Justices Rule
Physicians in Pennsylvania can be held liable for turning away a mental health patient who goes on to harm someone if that patient came to the hospital asking for help, the state Supreme Court ruled Friday.
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April 25, 2025
HHS Says Cuts Target Excess After Judge Seeks More Info
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services told a Rhode Island federal judge that a group of states has no basis to challenge the cancellation of billions in grants supporting public health programs because they already received the funds appropriated to them by Congress.
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April 25, 2025
Trans Prisoners Fight For Care Over New White House Hurdles
After staff at a New Jersey federal prison told Alishea Sophia Kingdom that, due to an executive order by President Donald Trump, she would no longer be receiving hormone therapy to treat gender dysphoria, Kingdom lodged the latest in a series of suits against the Federal Bureau of Prisons that contend following the executive order violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment.
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April 25, 2025
Organ Donor Network Wants Veteran's Waitlist Bias Suit Axed
The United Network for Organ Sharing asked a Georgia federal court to toss a lawsuit filed against it and several university medical schools over allegations that they delayed a Black military veteran's ability to receive a kidney transplant by artificially inflating his kidney function scores.
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April 25, 2025
DOD To Assess Tricare Program Competition In Ga. And Fla.
The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded contracts to聽CareSource Military and Veterans to compete with managed care support contractors in delivering health, medical and administrative support services to eligible Tricare beneficiaries聽in the Atlanta and Tampa markets.聽
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April 25, 2025
2nd Circ. Says Withdrawn Application Dooms Age Bias Suit
The Second Circuit refused Friday to reopen a sleep doctor's lawsuit claiming a hospital refused to consider him for a job because he was 66 years old, saying his decision to turn down an interview after receiving a misaddressed email doomed his case.
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April 25, 2025
5 Issues Benefits Attys Want The Gov't To Shed Light On
The first three months of President Donald Trump's administration have left lawyers who represent employers and benefit plans hungry for clarity on issues like cryptocurrency as a 401(k) investment and coverage for gender-affirming care. Here, 极速赛车 looks at five areas where attorneys are hoping for guidance or regulations.
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April 24, 2025
Ex-Pain Clinic Owner Gets 3陆 Years For Drug Test Scheme
The former owner of a Pennsylvania pain management practice has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison for conspiring with others to defraud Medicare by submitting unnecessary urine drug tests for chronic opioid patients at his medical clinics.
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April 24, 2025
'Egregious' Delays Wipe Out Ga. Health Fraud Case
A Georgia federal judge on Thursday dismissed an eight-year-old case over alleged Medicaid fraud, calling the government's delays in bringing three healthcare executives to trial "egregious" and noting that the alleged criminal conduct took place between 12 and 25 years ago.
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April 24, 2025
No Greece Trip For Ex-Conn. Official Facing Corruption Cases
A Connecticut federal judge on Thursday denied a former state official's request to take a trip to Greece amid two indictments, an order that came the day after the government opposed the plan.
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April 24, 2025
Polsinelli Gains 2 Healthcare Shareholders In Denver
Polsinelli PC announced this week that it has brought two Denver-based attorneys from Husch Blackwell LLP and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to its healthcare practice, which the firm says gained six new shareholders in the past 12 months, not including these most recent additions.
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April 24, 2025
Harvard Seeks To Move 'Swiftly' In $2B Fund Freeze Suit
Harvard University is seeking to move as quickly as possible to get to the merits of its suit challenging the Trump administration's $2.2 billion funding freeze, asking a Massachusetts federal judge to expedite discovery and briefing.
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April 24, 2025
Workplace Screening Co. To Pay $8M For False Billing Claims
Vault Medical Services will pay $8 million to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted false reimbursement claims for providing COVID-19 testing and other pandemic-related services to a federal program designated for uninsured patients.
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April 23, 2025
11th Circ. Considers Timeliness Of J&J Pelvic Mesh Claims
An Alabama couple urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to revive their lawsuit over injuries allegedly caused by pelvic mesh manufactured by Ethicon Inc. and its parent Johnson & Johnson, arguing that a district court wrongly found their claims were time-barred.
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April 23, 2025
Feds Oppose Ex-Conn. Official's 'Troubling' Greece Trip Plan
Federal prosecutors on Wednesday opposed a twice-indicted ex-Connecticut budget official's request to spend six weeks in Greece visiting family as he awaits twin corruption trials, citing a skipped deadline to relinquish guns and the risk that he might use Greek citizenship to evade justice.
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April 23, 2025
Genetic Testing Co., Marketer Settle FCA Case For $6M
A genetic testing company, marketing firm, and their top executives have agreed to pay $6 million to resolve the government's allegations that they billed Medicare for unnecessary medical tests, in violation of the False Claims Act.
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April 23, 2025
Eli Lilly Sues 4 Telehealth Cos. For Weight Loss Drug Copies
Eli Lilly filed a new round of lawsuits Wednesday over the compounding of its popular weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound, accusing four telehealth companies of making copies of the medications while alleging that two companies violated laws requiring doctors to make medical decisions, not corporations.聽
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April 22, 2025
Free Speech Experts Question DOJ Letter To Medical Journal
A federal prosecutor's letter to a medical journal skeptically asking about its commitment to nonpartisan debate is an unusual intrusion into editorial decision-making and may interfere with the publication's First Amendment rights, free speech experts say.
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April 22, 2025
Hogan Lovells Adds Ex-HHS Atty To Health Practice
Hogan Lovells on Tuesday announced the arrival of a former U.S. Department of Health and Human Services attorney to the firm's global regulatory and intellectual property practice group.
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April 22, 2025
Trump's Healthcare Order A Mixed Bag For Big Pharma
While Trump's executive order last week is more of a general road map than a clear plan for cutting prices, experts say it signals key policy priorities for the administration 鈥 including on a point of serious contention between drug companies and federal regulators.
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April 22, 2025
Pharma Co. Owner Cops To Selling $60M Of Sham HIV Drugs
An owner of a pharmaceutical company has pled guilty in Florida to participating in a $60 million nationwide scheme to illegally distribute misbranded and adulterated HIV drugs to patients.
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April 22, 2025
MoFo Adds Perkins Coie FDA Regulatory Leader In DC
Morrison Foerster LLP has hired a former Perkins Coie LLP leader who focuses his practice on a range of regulatory matters involving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as its new head of food and regulatory, the firm announced Tuesday.

'Fetal Personhood' Animates Neb. Aborted-Remains Debate
Nebraska lawmakers are sparring over a bill that would require healthcare facilities to bury or cremate fetal remains following an elective abortion. Supporters envision a "dignified" disposition. Opponents decry a requirement targeting providers while advancing the 鈥渇etal personhood鈥 doctrine.

Medicare Advantage 'Upcoding' In Federal Crosshairs
Dr. Mehmet Oz and others have called for a crackdown on fraud and waste in privately run Medicare plans. But addressing "upcoding" won't be easy, and healthcare attorneys are watching to see whether the increased attention translates into actual enforcement.

Enforcement Delays Ahead Amid HHS Regional Closures
The Trump administration's overhaul of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' in-house legal team is likely to slow enforcement proceedings and other compliance activities involving Medicare providers.
Expert Analysis
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Reproductive Health Under Trump So Far, And What's Next
Based on priorities stated so far, the Trump administration will likely continue to weaken Biden-era policies that protect reproductive health, with abortion, in vitro fertilization and contraception all being issues to watch closely amid a post-Dobbs shift, say attorneys at McDermott.
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What's Next For Lab Test Regulation Without FDA Authority
A recent Texas federal court decision vacating the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's final rule that would apply FDA regulations to laboratory-developed tests signals potential positive impacts in the diagnostic space, and could inspire more healthcare entities to litigate against the government, say attorneys at Hooper Lundy.
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6 Criteria Can Help Assess Executive Branch Actions
With new executive policy changes announced seemingly every day, several questions can help courts, policymakers and businesses determine whether such actions are proper, effective and in keeping with our democratic norms, say Marc Levin and Khalil Cumberbatch at the Council on Criminal Justice.
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Learning From COVID-19 Enforcement Against Nursing Homes
Five years after the COVID-19 outbreak caused a high number of deaths in nursing homes, an examination of enforcement actions against nursing homes in New York and elsewhere in the country highlights obstacles that may arise when bringing cases of this type, and ways to overcome them, says Kenneth Levine at Stone & Magnanini.
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How Plan Sponsors Can Mitigate Risk In PBM Contracts
A recent lawsuit in New York federal court alleges that JPMorgan caused exorbitant prescription costs by mishandling the pharmacy benefit manager arrangement, adding to a growing body of Employee Retirement Income Security Act fiduciary breach litigation and affirming that fiduciaries must proactively manage their healthcare plan vendors, say attorneys at Hall Benefits Law.
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4th Circ. Health Data Ruling Opens Door To State Law Claims
In Real Time Medical v. PointClickCare, the Fourth Circuit recently clarified that state law claims can rest in part on violations of a federal law that prohibits electronic health information blocking, expanding legal risks for health IT companies and potentially creating exposure to a range of competitive implications, say attorneys at BCLP.
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Unpacking Trump Admin Plans For Value-Based Care
Recent developments from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation suggest the Trump administration intends to put its own stamp on value-based care, emphasizing cost savings assessment in particular, with its recent cancellation of several payment models that had supported primary care, says Miranda Franco at Holland & Knight.
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What To Expect For Stem Cell Regulation Under Trump Admin
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.
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How Importers Can Minimize FCA Risks Of Tariff Mitigation
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.
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10 Practical Takeaways From FDA's Biopharma AI Guidance
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.
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Lawmakers Shouldn't Overlook Rare Disease Therapies' Value
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.
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What Trump's Order Means For The Legal Status Of IVF
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.
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Mitigating Tariff Risks For Healthcare In US And Canada
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.