Last week, CMS issued a proposed rule as part of a broader Administration-wide initiative to reduce regulatory and administrative burdens. The proposed rule would absolve states from many of the requirements of a final...more
On June 19, the House of Representatives passed the funding bill for the Department of Health and Human Services for fiscal year 2020. CMS is funded in this annual legislation and this funding bill is often a vehicle for...more
On June 13, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Department of Labor and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a new regulation that is intended to increase the use of tax-favored health reimbursement...more
Excerpt:
I. Introduction -
In February of 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) issued a Proposed Rule that, if adopted, would upend the current prescription drug...more
In February of 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) issued a Proposed Rule that, if adopted, would upend the current prescription drug rebate system. According to HHS-OIG,...more
In 2017, Massachusetts enacted a supplemental appropriations bill providing for the creation of an employer healthcare coverage form that Massachusetts employers with six or more employees would be required to submit...more
I. Introduction -
In May 2018, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) introduced a “Blueprint” and Request for Information setting forth proposed actions and policies as a means to purportedly help lower...more
On November 13, 2017, a group of hospital trade associations (the American Hospital Association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and America’s Essential Hospitals), along with two health system providers, filed...more
On Tuesday, November 7, 2017, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development issued proposed regulations to implement the Employer Medical Assistance Contribution (EMAC) supplemental assessment that was...more
On October 12, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) entitled “Promoting Healthcare Choice and Competition Across the United States.” The much-anticipated EO directs the Departments of Treasury, Labor, and...more
Since the beginning of this year’s legislative session, Governor Baker has expressed concern over the growth in enrollment in MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program. A look at the numbers explains why. Prior to the...more
Early on Thursday morning, March 9, the Committee on Ways and Means of the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would fundamentally restructure the Affordable Care Act (or, as it is sometimes colloquially...more
On February 15, 2017 the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule entitled, “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Market Stabilization.”
Excerpt -
In general, the proposed rule...more
On January 20, 2017, the Office of Chief Counsel of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a Memorandum on the tax treatment of benefits paid by fixed-indemnity health plans. In the Memorandum, the OCC concludes that...more
Market Based Payment for Clinical Diagnostic Laboratory Tests -
Summary -
On June 17, 2016 the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the long awaited Medicare Clinical Diagnostic Laboratory Tests...more
7/5/2016
/ ADLT ,
Algorithms ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
CLFS ,
Clinical Laboratories ,
Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Comment Period ,
Data Collection ,
Diagnostic Tests ,
MACs ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
PAMA ,
Payment Systems ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Provider Payments ,
Reporting Requirements
On January 21, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final rule implementing the prescription drug rebate provisions enacted as part of the health care reform law, the Affordable Care Act...more
In a 5-4 decision, the United State Supreme Court ruled Monday in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., that closely held for-profit corporations may invoke religious objections to exclude contraceptive coverage from the...more
On May 23, Judge Contreras of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (DC District Court) ruled that the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) did not have the statutory authority to promulgate its...more
6/7/2014
/ Administrative Authority ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Covered Entities ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
HRSA ,
Orphan Drugs ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
PHRMA ,
Popular ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Section 340B ,
Summary Judgment
On December 8, 2003, the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (the “MMA”) was signed into law by former President George W. Bush1. Prior to the enactment of the MMA, Medicare prescription drug...more
Foley Hoag and the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed) collaborated on an important resource guiding manufacturers, importers, and producers of taxable medical devices through the newly released Internal Revenue...more
After months of uncertainty, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the federal healthcare reform law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). What does this landmark law mean for employers now and in the near and distant future?...more