On July 2, 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the reinvigoration of their False Claims Act (FCA) enforcement efforts through the formation of a joint FCA...more
7/9/2025
/ Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare
Key Points -
- The Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) has issued Advisory Opinion No. 25-04 (AO 25-04), its first advisory opinion of the year addressing a proposed arrangement...more
7/8/2025
/ Advisory Opinions ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Compliance ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Hospitals ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
OIG
Key Points -
- Who is impacted: Manufacturers of pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and food products.
- What is changing: The agency is prioritizing user fee reauthorization, the MAHA initiative and a push for...more
5/23/2025
/ Biosimilars ,
Executive Orders ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Generic Drugs ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology
Companies that interact with FDA are likely to find that the layoff of 3,500 employees on April 1, 2025, affects their dealings in a variety of ways....more
There has been a flurry of activity at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since the start of the Trump administration. Day-to-day operations at FDA are already significantly altered, and we expect the trickle-down effects...more
Since the announcement that president-elect Donald Trump would nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) as the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), media reports have featured opinions from...more
1/23/2025
/ Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Safety ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
GRAS ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Trump Administration ,
User Fees
Key Points -
- It remains to be seen what priorities Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Marty Makary might set if confirmed as HHS secretary and FDA commissioner, respectively.
- The Trump administration will likely focus on drug...more
1/21/2025
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Secretary of HHS ,
Trump Administration
In this issue of our newsletter on developments impacting the life sciences industry, we examine topics including how the increased DOJ and FDA focus on cybersecurity issues could lead to new theories of False Claims Act...more
11/3/2023
/ Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hospitals ,
Laboratory Developed Tests ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
OCR ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Telehealth ,
Tracking Systems
On September 29, 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a proposed rule that would end its long-standing policy of enforcement discretion with respect to regulation of laboratory-developed tests (LDTs) (the...more
10/3/2023
/ Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Healthcare ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements
In this month’s Privacy & Cybersecurity Update, we look at Washington state’s passage of the first-ever state-level health data privacy law and the finalized California Consumer Privacy Act regulations. We also examine a...more
5/2/2023
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Fraudulent Wire Transfers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
Insurance Industry ,
Medical Devices ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
State Privacy Laws
In 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) entered into 31 new corporate integrity agreements (CIAs) with companies and individuals in lieu of exercising its permissive exclusion...more
Embedded in the thousands of pages of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (the omnibus legislation) that President Joe Biden signed into law on December 29, 2022, is a section that amends the Food, Drug and Cosmetic...more
1/6/2023
/ Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
FDA Approval ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
HCEI ,
Information Sharing ,
Joe Biden ,
Life Sciences ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
New Legislation ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
On February 22, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a long-awaited rule to amend its Quality System Regulation (QSR), which is codified at 21 CFR Part 820 and sets forth current good manufacturing practice...more
In 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) entered into 30 new corporate integrity agreements (CIAs) with companies and individuals to resolve exclusion authority arising out of...more
Three recent settlements demonstrate the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) continued scrutiny of product quality and manufacturing issues in the medical device industry. Using the civil False Claims Act (FCA) and the...more
9/9/2021
/ Criminal Investigations ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Falsified Documents ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
Product Defects ,
Qui Tam ,
Whistleblowers
On August 2, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued its final rule amending the intended use regulations codified at 21 CFR 801.4 and 21 CFR 201.128, marking the end of an effort FDA began in 2015. While the...more
8/18/2021
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Final Rules ,
First Amendment ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Intended Use ,
Life Sciences ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
Off-Label Use ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Product Labels ,
Safe Harbors
Enforcement in Life Sciences Series:
Key Cases in 2020 Reflect Emerging DOJ Focus for Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Makers -
About the Enforcement in Life Sciences Series -
Recent settlements between the U.S....more
Enforcement in Life Sciences Series:
Key Cases in 2020 Reflect Emerging DOJ Focus for Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Makers -
About the Enforcement in Life Sciences Series -
Recent settlements between the U.S....more
Enforcement in Life Sciences Series:
Key Cases in 2020 Reflect Emerging DOJ Focus for Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Makers -
About the Enforcement in Life Sciences Series -
Recent settlements between the U.S....more
Enforcement in Life Sciences Series:
Key Cases in 2020 Reflect Emerging DOJ Focus for Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Makers -
About the Enforcement in Life Sciences Series -
Recent settlements between the U.S....more
4/22/2021
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Compliance ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
Novartis ,
OIG ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Sunshine Act
On July 10, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA or the Agency) announced plans to resume domestic facility inspections following the March 2020 suspension of most foreign and domestic facility inspections as a result...more
7/15/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Domestic Corporations ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Foreign Corporations ,
Medical Devices ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Public Health ,
Rating System ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Risk Assessment ,
Safety Inspections ,
Tobacco Regulations
Health care fraud continues to be a top enforcement priority for U.S. prosecutors, and nowhere is this more true than for the medical technology sector. From 2014-2019, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) brought enforcement...more
4/30/2020
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Prosecutors ,
Health IT ,
Inducements ,
Kickbacks ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
Medical Technology Companies ,
Off-Label Promotion ,
Patient Safety ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Product Defects ,
Sunshine Act
In 2019, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) enforcement activity targeting drug and device manufacturers jumped sharply over the prior year, reflecting an increased focus on fraud and abuse in the life sciences sector. More...more
1/24/2020
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Fraud ,
Fraud and Abuse ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Imports ,
Innovation ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare Part D ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
PHI ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Settlement Agreements ,
State Legislatures ,
Trump Administration
Corporate integrity agreements (CIAs) continued to be an important tool for the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG) in 2019. Notably, pharmaceutical and device manufacturers saw...more
1/21/2020
/ Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medical Devices ,
OIG ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
On October 22, 2019, Skadden hosted our Ninth Annual Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Enforcement and Litigation Seminar in New York, which focused on U.S. enforcement issues companies face throughout the industry. The key...more
12/2/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Big Data ,
CDRH ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Co-payments ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Disgorgement ,
Drug Pricing ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Advertising ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Food Manufacturers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Lanham Act ,
Life Sciences ,
Medical Devices ,
NAD ,
Off-Label Promotion ,
OIG ,
OPDP ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Physician Compensation Arrangements ,
Pleading Standards ,
POM Wonderful v Coca Cola ,
REMS ,
RICO ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management ,
SCOTUS ,
Tobacco