The healthcare sector is particularly vulnerable to cybersecurity risks and the stakes for patient care and safety are particularly high. Healthcare facilities are attractive targets for cyber criminals in light of their...more
1/16/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Incident Reporting ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
OCR ,
Popular ,
Ransomware
As reported earlier in the MedLaw Blog (August 9, 2023), a federal District Court vacated portions of the No Surprises Act federal regulations. Thereafter, CMS halted the arbitration process for resolving disputes regarding...more
HHS sent notices to noncompliant physicians and facilities on March 10, 2022 giving them 30 days to return funds paid to healthcare providers who have not complied with the agency’s reporting requirements....more
On December 10, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) collaborated on announcing proposed HIPAA changes, intended to “empower patients” and “improve coordination of...more
On December 2, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will jointly publish the final regulations first proposed...more
On June 23, 2020, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia denied the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) summary judgment motion claiming the Trump Administration had exceeded its authority and...more
The following are just some random thoughts or curated information regarding the impact the COVID pandemic will have on privacy in general, and health information privacy in particular.
I have attached a link to...more
While we are waiting for final disposition of the AKS Safe Harbors and Stark Exceptions proposed in October of 2019, since the comment period expired December 31, 2019 and final rules have not been issued, I thought we should...more
3/6/2020
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Comment Period ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Exceptions ,
Fair Market Value ,
Hospitals ,
Medicare ,
Physicians ,
Proposed Rules ,
Safe Harbors ,
Stark Law
You can now tell that telemedicine is a mature industry, because it has achieved enough critical mass that the fraud has started and the OIG is beginning to prosecute. There is a lag time between when the cash flow and profit...more
2/10/2020
/ 21st Century Cures Act ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
EHR ,
Health Care Providers ,
Kickbacks ,
Mobile Apps ,
OIG ,
ONC ,
PHI ,
Proposed Rules ,
Technology ,
Technology Sector ,
Telemedicine
On October 22, 2019, CMS and OIG (Office of Inspector General) released new proposed rules regarding Stark Law Exceptions and Anti-Kickback Safe Harbors in response to what has universally been christened as the “Regulatory...more
11/7/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Exceptions ,
Health Care Providers ,
OIG ,
Physicians ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Safe Harbors ,
Stark Law ,
Value-Based Care
HHS has long admitted that the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) and the Stark law have not evolved to keep pace with the transition to value based care. In June of 2018, HHS issued an RFI seeking additional information and HHS...more
On December 2, 2017, the Department of Health issued the new maximum fees for duplication of medical records. The link to the Pennsylvania Bulletin Announcement follows...more
HHS has published a very brief guide, in the form of a checklist, to explain the steps for a HIPAA covered entity or business associate to take in response to a cyber related security incident. You can access the checklist at...more
The Pennsylvania Department of Health published the approved 2017 medical record cost for production of medical charts and records. The notice is attached in the link below....more
HHS is gearing up to design and implement a revised Medicare payment system. The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) has designated a merit based incentive payment system (MIPS) as a goal. CMS is...more
In September, 2015, OCR and HHS issued a press release announcing a Resolution Agreement with the Cancer Care Group, P.C., which included entry into the agreement, the adoption of a robust compliance plan, and the payment of...more
The Pa. Departments of Health and Insurance have established a website in an attempt to provide ongoing information and guidance regarding the termination of the Highmark...more
The MLN Connects™ Provider eNews contains important news, announcements, and updates for health care professionals.
ICD-10 Compliance Date -
On April 1, 2014, the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (PAMA)...more
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently announced yet another enforcement action. Specifically, OCR opened a compliance review of Concentra Health Services (Concentra) upon...more
Physicians always have been justifiably concerned about reports to the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) regarding malpractice payments and adverse peer review actions. Two areas of frequent uncertainty have...more
12/27/2013
/ Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Dismissals ,
HCQIA ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
HRSA ,
Medical Malpractice ,
National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) ,
Peer Review ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Settlement