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Policy & Compliance

  • April 15, 2025

    Legislation Roundup: States Consider Slew Of Abortion Bills

    Nearly three years after the U.S. Supreme Court's Dobbs decision upended federal abortion access protection, dozens of abortion-related bills are moving through state legislatures this year.

  • April 15, 2025

    Ga. Woman Says Baby 'Ripped Away' After Embryo Mix-Up

    A South Carolina fertility clinic has been hit with a lawsuit from a former patient alleging that its doctors placed the wrong embryo inside her — a fact she discovered only when she, a white woman, gave birth to a Black boy — only to have the baby "ripped away from her" by his biological parents after months of raising him as her own.

  • April 15, 2025

    McGuireWoods Immune From Defamation Case, NC Panel Told

    McGuireWoods LLP and a former partner have told a North Carolina state appeals court that they have absolute privilege over allegedly defamatory statements made in connection with an investigation into the former CEO of a managed care organization, arguing that the trial court should have granted them a pretrial win.

  • April 15, 2025

    Pa. Man To Plead Guilty In Harvard Body Parts Theft Case

    A Pennsylvania man will plead guilty to a federal charge for transporting body parts that were allegedly stolen from cadavers by the manager of Harvard Medical School's morgue, according to a Tuesday filing.

  • April 15, 2025

    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.

  • April 15, 2025

    Abortion Bans At Wyo. High Court: 3 Things To Know

    Wyoming’s highest court is set to hear arguments over whether two near-total abortion bans violate the state Constitution and its guarantee of personal choice in healthcare.

  • April 14, 2025

    9th Circ. Says $24M Punitive Damages In Jail Death Too Steep

    A jury correctly determined that a healthcare contractor was liable for the death of a woman in custody in a Washington jail, a split Ninth Circuit panel ruled Monday, but its $24 million award for punitive damages was excessive.

  • April 14, 2025

    Ark. PBM Regulation Violates ERISA, Teamsters Fund Says

    An Arkansas insurance regulation forcing health plans to turn over information about reimbursement rates negotiated by pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, conflicts with federal benefits law, a Teamsters healthcare fund claimed, urging an Illinois federal court to block the state from enforcing the rule.

  • April 14, 2025

    Judge Threatens Penalties Over Late Report In Fla. Fee Suit

    A Florida federal judge threatened parties in a federal proposed class action over excessive fees charged to maintain retirement savings plans, warning there will be sanctions if they do not respond to an order to show why they failed to timely file a case management report.

  • April 14, 2025

    Quinn Emanuel, King & Spalding Rep Harvard In Trump Letter

    Harvard University on Monday turned to a pair of high-powered lawyers from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP and King & Spalding LLP as the school pushed back on the Trump administration's policy demands linked to nearly $9 billion in federal funding — a move that prompted the government to freeze more than $2 billion in grants for the school.

  • April 14, 2025

    FTC Joins DOJ In Targeting Anticompetitive Regulations

    The Federal Trade Commission launched a public inquiry Monday to look into reducing regulations that are hindering competition, following a similar move by the U.S. Department of Justice last month.

  • April 14, 2025

    Takeda Gets Actos Case Paused For Class Cert. Review

    A New York federal court has paused a lawsuit accusing Takeda Pharmaceuticals of inflating the price of its diabetes treatment, Actos, by delaying the entry of generic alternatives, and took a scheduled July trial off the calendar, as the company appeals a class certification ruling.

  • April 14, 2025

    Healthcare Duo Joins Carlton Fields From Mass. Boutique

    Carlton Fields announced Monday that a pair of experienced healthcare attorneys joined the firm's Los Angeles and Tampa, Florida, offices after a stint with Massachusetts boutique Kajko Weisman & Colasanti LLP.

  • April 14, 2025

    Sandoz Sues Amgen Over Enbrel Biosimilar

    Sandoz accused Amgen of illegally blocking biosimilar competition to its blockbuster Enbrel drug for arthritis and other inflammatory diseases, alleging that the company used strategic acquisitions and illegal patent extensions to fend off challengers in the space and inflate U.S. prices for its drug.

  • April 11, 2025

    Amgen Can't Ditch Regeneron's Bundling Antitrust Suit

    A Delaware federal judge on Thursday denied Amgen's bid to toss antitrust litigation brought by Regeneron accusing its rival of using a bundling scheme to increase the sales of its cholesterol drug Repatha and push competitors out of the market.

  • April 11, 2025

    Express Scripts Judge Asks If Khan's FTC Exit Affects Suit

    The Missouri federal judge overseeing Express Scripts' lawsuit accusing the Federal Trade Commission of defaming it with a report excoriating the pharmacy benefits manager for allegedly inflating drug costs asked the parties Friday if new leadership at the commission affects the case that significantly targets former Chair Lina Khan.

  • April 11, 2025

    Telehealth Co. Sued Over 2024 Data Breach

    A company that helps healthcare providers manage after-hours patient calls was hit with a proposed class action in New York federal court Friday alleging that it failed to secure user data prior to a 2024 breach that exposed the sensitive information of nearly 1 million people.

  • April 11, 2025

    Fla. Pharmacy Pleads Guilty To Fraud Over Opioid OD Drug

    A Florida-based pharmacy has agreed to plead guilty to healthcare fraud and to pay more than $1 million to settle civil claims it submitted false authorizations for an expensive opioid overdose treatment to federal insurers.

  • April 10, 2025

    AbbVie Wants ND, SD Drug Pricing Laws Blocked

    Drugmaker AbbVie Inc. on Thursday asked federal courts to block new drug-pricing laws in both North Dakota and South Dakota, alleging that the measures requiring the company to transfer products to certain pharmacies at discounted prices are unconstitutional.

  • April 10, 2025

    Vanda Sues FDA To Block Off-Label Use Drug Promo Regs

    A pharmaceutical company, a Texas physician and an often-jet lagged traveler sued the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Texas federal court Wednesday seeking to block marketing restrictions on the off-label uses of FDA-approved drugs, arguing that long-standing rules and Biden-era guidance runs afoul of the First Amendment.

  • April 10, 2025

    Calif. Centers Used 'Body Brokers' In $10M Scam, BCBS Says

    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma slammed two California recovery centers and their owners with a lawsuit Thursday, alleging they spearheaded a $10 million kickback scheme to employ "body brokers" to find Indigenous patients for substance treatment facilities where they went to appalling lengths to stop them from leaving.

  • April 10, 2025

    Holmes Seeks Full 9th Circ. Review Of Theranos Fraud Appeal

    Convicted Theranos Inc. founder Elizabeth Holmes has asked the Ninth Circuit for en banc review of a panel's decision to affirm her criminal fraud conviction and 11-year prison sentence, saying problems with the opinion included a "time-warping relevance theory."

  • April 10, 2025

    Man Admits To $12.5M PPE Investment Fraud

    A California man pled guilty Thursday to defrauding investors of $12.5 million by telling them he had a business opportunity to manufacture personal protective equipment and to create an aerosol product that would kill the coronavirus, Texas federal prosecutors said.

  • April 10, 2025

    Mich. Justices Mull Hospital's Liability For Contract Doc's Acts

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Thursday weighed a Corewell Health hospital's possible vicarious liability for independent physicians practicing within the hospital, with one justice pushing back on the idea that liability would be limited to emergency rooms.

  • April 09, 2025

    Mass. Justices Asked To Raise Bar For Pension, Benefit Loss

    Massachusetts' highest court was asked on Wednesday to adopt a more expansive interpretation of what constitutes cruel or unusual punishment or an excessive fine in the case of a former state trooper whose $1 million public pension and healthcare benefits were forfeited after his conviction in an overtime fraud case.

Expert Analysis

  • Critical Questions Remain After High Court's Abortion Rulings

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in two major abortion-related cases this term largely preserve the status quo for now, but leave federal preemption, the Comstock Act and in vitro fertilization in limbo, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Navigating FDA Supply Rule Leeway For Small Dispensers

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    As the November compliance deadline for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's new pharmaceutical distribution supply chain rules draws closer, small dispensers should understand the narrow flexibilities that are available, and the questions to consider before taking advantage of them, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • 1st Gender Care Ban Provides Context For High Court Case

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    The history of Arkansas' ban on gender-affirming medical care — the first such legislation in the U.S. — provides important insight into the far-reaching ramifications that the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Skrmetti next term will have on transgender healthcare, says Tyler Saenz at Baker Donelson.

  • 6 Lessons From DOJ's 1st Controlled Drug Case In Telehealth

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    Following the U.S. Department of Justice’s first-ever criminal prosecution over telehealth-prescribed controlled substances in U.S. v. Ruthia He, healthcare providers should be mindful of the risks associated with restricting the physician-patient relationship when crafting new business models, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • After Chevron: Scale Tips Favor Away From HHS Agencies

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    The loss of Chevron deference may indirectly aid parties in challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' interpretations of regulations and could immediately influence several pending cases challenging HHS on technical questions and agency authority, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • After Chevron: FDA Regulations In The Crosshairs

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine is likely to unleash an array of challenges against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, focusing on areas of potential overreach such as the FDA's authority under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • USPTO Disclaimer Rule Would Complicate Patent Prosecution

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    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice could lead to a patent owner being unable to enforce a valid patent simply because it is indirectly tied to a patent in which a single claim is found anticipated or obvious in view of the prior art, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.