Podcast — Drug Pricing: How Are Payers Responding to the IRA?
Podcast: IP(DC): Drug Prices, Political Pressures & Patents
On August 20, 2024, OIG issued Advisory Opinion No. 24-07 in which it responded to a request for an advisory opinion regarding a nonprofit grant-making organization’s (Requestor) proposal to fund a patient assistance program...more
This issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights regulatory activity for April 2024. We discuss several US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agency actions, including the Calendar Year (CY) 2025...more
On April 8, 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a long-awaited favorable Advisory Opinion (AO 24-02) for a charitable patient assistance program (PAP) focused on rare...more
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently dismissed an appeal by the Pharmaceutical Coalition for Patient Access (“PCPA”) that challenged a negative opinion issued by the U.S. Department...more
Healthcare compliance risks exist even when a company takes steps to structure its business activities to follow the government's own statements. A recent decision by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of...more
A Virginia Federal Judge recently rejected a challenge to a negative Advisory Opinion issued by the Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) that disapproved of a proposal where certain...more
From an agency guidance and regulatory developments perspective, 2022 was fairly quiet until the latter part of the year. Consistent with past practice, the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human...more
On November 9, the Pharmaceutical Coalition for Patient Access (PCPA) filed an action against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) after HHS’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) determined that a proposed...more
Patient assistance programs (PAPs) that seek to subsidize patient co-payments for drugs covered by Medicare may involve compliance challenges. A recent U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector...more
On October 5, 2022, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) published Advisory Opinion 22-19 (Advisory Opinion), in which it determined that a proposed oncology drug discount arrangement could constitute grounds for the...more
On October 5, 2022, OIG posted Advisory Opinion 22-19 in response to a nonprofit corporation’s (Requestor) request to analyze a proposal for certain pharmaceutical companies (each, the Funding Manufacturer) to subsidize: 1)...more
On October 5, 2022, the Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) posted Advisory Opinion No. 22-19 (the “Opinion”), which limits the ability of pharmaceutical manufacturers to offer cost-sharing subsidies to Medicare Part D (“Part...more
On October 5, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published Advisory Opinion No. 22-19, finding that a proposal by an entity funded entirely by manufacturers of oncology...more
On January 19, 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) released a favorable advisory opinion, OIG Advisory Opinion No. 22-01 (the “Opinion”), analyzing a proposed expansion of...more
On September 18, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued an unfavorable Advisory Opinion, No. 20-05 (the Opinion), that a pharmaceutical manufacturer’s (Requestor) proposed...more
On September 23, the HHS OIG published Advisory Opinion No. 20-05, advising that OIG found “highly suspect” a manufacturer’s proposal to create a copay subsidy program to help certain financially eligible Medicare...more
Enforcement - OIG Issues Advisory Opinion on Provision of Samples by a Device Distributor - On April 30, 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a...more
On Jan. 4, 2018, the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued an open letter containing guidance regarding the provision of certain free drugs to federal healthcare program beneficiaries. Specifically, the OIG stated that...more
On December 11, 2017, the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) posted a favorable Advisory Opinion, permitting a proposed pilot Program involving a collaboration between a pharmaceutical manufacturer...more
The OIG approved a retail pharmacy chain's proposal to expand its benefit program, which allows participating federal health care program beneficiaries to receive discounts and other benefits when purchasing certain products...more
Enforcement - OIG Issues Advisory Opinion Allowing Free or Reduced-Cost Lodging and Meals - On March 3, 2017, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued...more
On December 7, 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Inspector General (OIG), issued a final rule creating additional “safe harbors” for the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute (42 USC § 1320a-7b(b) et...more
On August 12, 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) posted Advisory Opinion No. 15-11, finding that a program to supply a limited amount of free cancer drugs to federal health...more