Change Healthcare, an affiliate of Optum and UnitedHealth Group, processes more than 15 billion health care transactions annually and touches one of every three patient records. On February 21, Change disconnected its...more
3/15/2024
/ American Medical Association ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Insurance Industry ,
Medicare Part B ,
Payment Systems ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Popular ,
Prescription Drug Coverage ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Ransomware
In Advisory Opinion No. 23-04, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) analyzed certain proposed changes to the functionality of a health care technology company’s online...more
8/15/2023
/ Advisory Opinions ,
Algorithms ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Federal Health Care Programs (FHCP) ,
Fees ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Technology ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
OIG
Telehealth experienced massive growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, due in no small part to various regulatory and reimbursement policies that federal agencies implemented following a declaration by the US Department of...more
6/6/2023
/ CARES Act ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
DEA ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Medicare ,
OCR ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reimbursements ,
SAMHSA ,
Telehealth
On July 20, 2022, the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a Special Fraud Alert cautioning physicians and other health care practitioners to use “heightened scrutiny” when entering into telemedicine arrangements that...more
8/1/2022
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Bribery ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Durable Medical Equipment ,
Enforcement ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraud ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicare Fraud ,
OIG ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, hospitals and other health care providers are facing a separate challenge: “Ivermania”—the wave of lawsuits filed against hospitals by guardians of COVID-19 patients seeking court orders...more
On November 4, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its Omnibus Staff Vaccination Rule, mandating that all Medicare and Medicaid-certified facilities regulated under Medicare health and safety...more
11/5/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Essential Workers ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
New Rule Finalizes Penalties for Violating the 2021 Price Transparency Rule -
On November 2, 2021, CMS published the 2022 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System Final Rule that addressed its previously-proposed...more
Click the link below for our complete analysis of recent updates to the Stark Law and Anti-Kickback Statute and their impact on health care providers.
...more
3/3/2021
/ 21st Century Cures Act ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Bonuses ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commercially Reasonable Efforts ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Fair Market Value ,
Final Rules ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance ,
Medicare Part D ,
OIG ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Profit Sharing ,
Safe Harbors ,
Stark Law ,
Value-Based Care
Recent updates to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute give providers additional flexibility to enter into innovative arrangements, but before doing so, providers must ensure they understand the safe harbor requirements...more
2/17/2021
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Digital Health ,
DMEPOS ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Hospitals ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
OIG ,
Safe Harbors ,
Stark Law ,
Technology ,
Value-Based Care
Program Emphasizes Connected Care Services for Low-Income and Veteran Patients -
In a Public Notice released today, the FCC announced that its “Connected Care Pilot Program” (Pilot Program) application filing window will...more
The Federal government is warning that the threat of cybercrime, and especially ransomware, to US hospitals and healthcare providers has increased.
The Federal government is warning of an “increased and ongoing cybercrime...more
10/29/2020
/ Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Collection ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
FBI ,
Health Care Providers ,
Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) ,
Hospitals ,
Personal Information ,
Ransomware
HHS has finalized the CARES Act provider reporting and recoupment rules and they are different from those put forth in the proposed form. Providers should take careful note — the new requirements are significant and...more
The FCC’s Connected Care Pilot Program is poised to defray eligible health care providers’ costs of providing certain telehealth services. On September 3, 2020, the FCC issued additional information and guidance for potential...more
9/15/2020
/ Community Health Systems ,
FCC ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Local Health Departments (LHDs) ,
Non-Profit Hospitals ,
Public Notice ,
Rural Health Care Program ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
Telecommunications Act ,
Telehealth ,
Universal Service Fund ,
USAC
As the spread of COVID-19 accelerates across the United States, hospitals, health systems, and other providers face unique challenges. Arent Fox’s Health Care Group analyzes what you need to know about regulatory changes and...more
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a second Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code to be used by laboratories for the testing and tracking of new cases of the 2019-Novel Coronavirus...more
On June 18, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hosted a workshop to discuss and analyze the effects of Certificates of Public Advantage (COPAs) and Certificates of Need (CONs) on price and access to health care...more
7/10/2019
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Certificate of Need ,
Certificates of Public Advantage (COPAs) ,
Construction Project ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Mergers ,
Patient Access ,
Public Comment ,
Quality of Care Standards