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Anti-Kickback EHR and Cybersecurity Safe Harbor

By Michael Cassidy

November 11, 2019

As another part of the Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care, OIG proposed revisions to the existing EHR Anti-Kickback Safe Harbor and added a cybersecurity component. The initial EHR Safe Harbor was developed in response to President George W. Bush’s 2004 initiative to extend EHR nationwide within 10 years, i.e. 2014. The proponents of those EHR regulations presumably thought the task would be completed within that time frame, because the initial proposal had a 10 year…

Med Law Blog

$1,600,000 Civil Money Penalty for HIPAA Violations by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission

By Danielle Dietrich

November 8, 2019

On November 7, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“HHS”) announced a $1,600,000 civil money penalty for violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Security and Breach Notification Rules. According to HHS, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (TX HHSC) “operates state supported living centers; provides mental health and substance use services; regulates child care and nursing facilities; and administers hundreds of…

Med Law Blog

Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care: New Stark & Anti-Kickback Rules

By Michael Cassidy

November 6, 2019

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 Sprint to Coordinated Care”, first announced by HHS in June of 2018. As background, please remember that, although the Anti-Kickback Safe Harbors and the Stark Law Exceptions are confusingly similar with respect to their intended purpose, they serve the following different…

Med Law Blog

$3,000,000 Settlement by University of Rochester Medical Center for Numerous HIPAA Violations

By Danielle Dietrich

November 5, 2019

On November 5, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“HHS”) announced a $3,000,000 settlement with the University of Rochester Medical Center (“URMC”) for violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Security and Breach Notification Rules in 2013 and 2017. According to HHS, URMC reported that protected health information (“PHI”) had been improperly disclosed after the loss of an unencrypted flash drive in 2013…

Med Law Blog

Federal Government Delays Hospital Transparency Regarding Commercial Rates

By Michael Cassidy

November 4, 2019

The federal government/Trump administration announced today a delay regarding a proposed rule requiring hospitals to disclose actual negotiated price rates. See WSJ News. In January, 2019, as reported in the MedLaw Blog on January 10, 2019, CMS added a rule requiring hospitals to publish their standard charges beginning January 2019. As noted in that blog post, requiring the “charge master disclosure” does not provide much in the way of transparency since so few…

Med Law Blog

$2,154,000 Civil Money Penalty for Numerous HIPAA Violations by Jackson Health System

By Danielle Dietrich

October 28, 2019

On October 23, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights (“HHS”) announced a $2,154,000 civil money penalty for numerous violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Security and Breach Notification Rules between 2013 and 2016. According to HHS, Jackson Health System (“JHS”) is a medical system based in Florida and provides health care to 650,000 patients on average each year. According to the HHS…

Med Law Blog

Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care: CMS/AKS and OIG Stark Proposed Amendments

By Michael Cassidy

October 22, 2019

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 also issued a release on December 12, 2018 seeking input on improving care coordination and reducing the regulatory burdens of the HIPAA rules. I would suggest that almost everybody else came to that conclusion much earlier…

Med Law Blog

Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Changes: 2020

By Michael Cassidy

October 1, 2019

Click here to read Mike Cassidy’s article which was featured in the Legal Report section of the September 2019 edition of the Allegheny County Medical Society Bulletin.…

Med Law Blog

Health Care Law Best Lawyers in America: 2020

By Michael Cassidy

August 15, 2019

Mike Cassidy has been honored as one of the Best Lawyers in America for the 11th consecutive year.…

Med Law Blog

Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Again Declines to Extend Consent Decree

By Michael Cassidy

June 19, 2019

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court, on remand from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, has again decided that the previously agreed termination date of the access provisions contained in the UPMC/Highmark Consent Decrees, i.e. June 30, 2019, is not a term subject to the modification provisions of those Consent Decrees, and is definite. The adjudication of the Commonwealth Court, attached hereto, discusses the history of the negotiation of the terms, especially the termination date, and confirms the Consent…

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Anti-Kickback EHR and Cybersecurity Safe Harbor

$1,600,000 Civil Money Penalty for HIPAA Violations by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission

Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care: New Stark & Anti-Kickback Rules

$3,000,000 Settlement by University of Rochester Medical Center for Numerous HIPAA Violations

Federal Government Delays Hospital Transparency Regarding Commercial Rates

$2,154,000 Civil Money Penalty for Numerous HIPAA Violations by Jackson Health System

Regulatory Sprint to Coordinated Care: CMS/AKS and OIG Stark Proposed Amendments

Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Changes: 2020

Health Care Law Best Lawyers in America: 2020

Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Again Declines to Extend Consent Decree

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