In the third and final episode of Florida Capital Conversations' healthcare privacy series, Tallahassee attorneys Shannon Hartsfield and Eddie Williams join hosts Nathan Adams and Mia McKown to discuss the challenges of...more
New York hospitals have less than a year to dust off their Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance programs and update them to comply with more stringent and detailed state regulations. Last...more
11/22/2024
/ Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) ,
Compliance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Hospitals ,
New Regulations ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
PHI ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Assessment ,
Security and Privacy Controls ,
State Health Departments
"Informed consent" has been described as "a bedrock principle of healthcare in a free society," and if a "patient is denied the ability to exercise or even consider informed consent, the patient's personal liberty suffers."1...more
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have started a new effort to educate the public about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA)....more
Hospitals care about patient privacy, but they also have to connect with the public. In the real world, people mostly connect online. Having a fully functional online presence often requires help from third parties. ...more
11/8/2023
/ American Hospital Association ,
Business Associates ,
Class Action ,
Covered Entities ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Hospitals ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
Tracking Systems ,
Web Tracking
In this episode of our “Florida Capital Conversations” podcast series, healthcare attorneys Mia McKown, Eddie Williams and Shannon Hartsfield discuss how privacy violations can put a healthcare practitioner's license at risk....more
Kathryn Isted In Harbor Healthcare System, L.P. v. United States, 5 F.4th 593 (5th Cir. 2021), the court of appeals ruled that the district court abused its discretion in refusing to exercise its equitable jurisdiction over a...more
10/18/2021
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Appeals ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Comment Period ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Discovery ,
Draft Guidance ,
Evidence ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Hospitals ,
Kickbacks ,
Managed Care Contracts ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Patient Referrals ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacies ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Qui Tam ,
Scienter
The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986 (EMTALA) is designed to prevent patient "dumping." It applies to all individuals coming to the emergency department (ED) of a hospital that accepts Medicare...more
Neurosurgeons' Compensation in Top 10 Percent Nationwide Gives Rise to Stark Act and FCA Claims -
In United States ex re. Bookwalter v. UPMC, 946 F. 3d 162 (3d Cir. 2019), the court ruled that the relators stated a Stark...more
2/25/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Diagnostic Tests ,
DMEPOS ,
Durable Medical Equipment ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Grants ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Medicare ,
Objective Falsity ,
Ownership Interest ,
Physicians ,
Protected Activity ,
Stark Law
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed House Bill 369, Chapter No. 2019-159, Laws of Florida, which became effective on July 1, 2019. The primary focus of the bill relates to substance abuse services. For example, the...more
7/3/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Certification Requirements ,
Exceptions ,
Governor DeSantis ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Hospitals ,
New Legislation ,
Patients ,
Substance Abuse ,
Supervisors
As new healthcare delivery models evolve, we may see an increase in hospitals that share space with other hospitals or healthcare entities. On May 3, 2019, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued draft...more
When a surveyor cites "immediate jeopardy" at a provider, supplier or laboratory’s location it can lead to serious consequences, including potential fines and termination from federal healthcare programs. On March 5, 2019,...more
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Dec. 28, 2018, announced the release of the "Health Industry Cybersecurity Practices: Managing Threats and Protecting Patients" that provides a "Call to Action" to make...more
1/14/2019
/ Best Practices ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Loss Prevention ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Security ,
Data Theft ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hackers ,
Health Care Providers ,
Health Clinics ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HITECH Act ,
Hospitals ,
Information Technology ,
Medical Devices ,
NIST ,
Patient Safety ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
PHI ,
Phishing Scams ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Standard of Care
Regulation -
CMS Contemplating Telemedicine Changes -
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently published what it described as a "major proposed rule" that covers a number of topics that could have...more
9/7/2018
/ Advisory Opinions ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Antitrust Litigation ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Comment Period ,
Common Ownership ,
Creditors ,
Debt Collection ,
Debtors ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Failed Legislation ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FDCPA ,
Former Employee ,
GPOs ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Shared Savings Program ,
OIG ,
Patients ,
Physician Fee Schedule ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Physicians ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Quality Payment Program (QPP) ,
Qui Tam ,
Safe Harbors ,
Self-Referral ,
Standing ,
Stark Law ,
Summary Judgment ,
Technology Sector ,
Telehealth ,
Telemedicine ,
Whistleblowers
The Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) requires a hospital with an emergency department (ED) to provide "an appropriate medical screening examination" when an individual comes to the ED and a request is made on...more
8/7/2018
/ EMTALA ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Insurance ,
Hospitals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Patients ,
Physicians ,
Qui Tam ,
Whistleblowers
Timely Topics -
By Shannon B. Hartsfield -
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Jan. 18, 2018, the creation of a new division within its Office for Civil Rights (OCR). OCR is described as...more
1/29/2018
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Appeals ,
Assisted Suicide ,
BOLI ,
Breach of Contract ,
Catholic Church ,
Charter Schools ,
Church Plans ,
Churches ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Defamation ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Establishment Clause ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) ,
Fees ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Hospitals ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Internet ,
Medicaid ,
New Guidance ,
Nonprofits ,
OCR ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Priests ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Accommodation ,
Public Health Service Act ,
Race Discrimination ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Exemption ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
Retirement Plan ,
RLUIPA ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
Sexual Conduct ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Summary Judgment ,
Trump v Hawaii ,
USCIS ,
Vetting
CMS issued a memo to state survey agency directors on December 28, 2017, to clarify CMS’s position on texting patient information. The memo, which indicates that it is effective “immediately,” states that CMS prohibits...more
The 340B Drug Pricing Program (340B Program), established by Section 602 of the Veterans Health Care Act of 1992, is administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of HHS. The 340B Program requires...more
9/29/2015
/ Audits ,
Compliance ,
Covered Entities ,
Dental Practice ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Fee-for-Service ,
Healthcare ,
Hospice ,
Hospitals ,
HRSA ,
MCOs ,
Medicaid ,
Medicaid Reimbursements ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacies ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Section 340B ,
Skilled Nursing Facility
Long-term care companies in Florida need to dust off their regulatory compliance plans to see if updates are needed in light of several bills that passed during the regular legislative session of 2015. If they are signed by...more
5/28/2015
/ Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) ,
Biologics ,
Continuing Care Retirement Communities ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Healthcare ,
Hospitals ,
Long Term Care Facilities ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Nursing Homes ,
Ombudsman ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
Vaccinations