The Federal Trade Commission has thrown a few wet blankets in the go-go world of healthcare corporate transactions in recent years, in the form of litigation to block mergers. But the agency's new director says most of the FTC's enforcement of antitrust laws actually happens in the less-discussed context of out-of-court settlements known as “consent orders.”
Deborah Feinstein, director of the FTC's Competition Bureau, told audiences at a legal conference in New York on Tuesday that litigation is too slow, costly, uncertain and imprecise to be used in every situation. Whenever the commission has a “workable settlement offer” that repairs the competitive harm, commissioners may decide a settlement is in the public's best interest.
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The news Thursday that the Internal Revenue Service will recognize same-sex marriages, no matter where the couples live, will have healthcare implications.
They're not necessarily positive ones, according to Brian Haile, senior vice president for healthcare policy at Jackson Hewitt Tax Service.
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California supporters of capping damages in medical malpractice lawsuits have gained an unexpected ally—Planned Parenthood. And that organization is coming under fire for its position on the issue.
Kathy Kneer, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, said the state's pain-and-suffering cap has helped protect women's access to obstetricians. “To the extent we have a stable obstetrician provider pool, there is evidence it is working,” she said.
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Medical journals and healthcare publications may soon notice more readers taking deep research dives into their archives looking for old studies, reports and articles on defensive medicine. That's because California's landmark 1975 Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act—which limits pain and suffering damages in medical malpractice lawsuits to $250,000—is coming under fire from two fronts.
The Consumer Watchdog organization and “medical negligence survivors” are working to get the Troy and Alana Pack Patient Safety Act, a ballot initiative, on the November ballot. Named after the children killed in a 2003 accident, the measure would require hospitals to subject physicians to random drug and alcohol testing, require mandatory testing after an unexpected death or serious injury, and adjust the $250,000 cap for inflation. That would raise the cap to $1.1 million. It needs to get about 750,000 signatures to get on the ballot.
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Stark
The healthcare world is populated by scores of legal experts who strive to keep up with the sprawling compendium of statutes, regulations and legal advisories known collectively as the “Stark law.” But the law's father, Fortney “Pete” Stark, is not one of them.
Stark, in fact, says he would favor repealing the law as it currently exists and getting back to the law's initial intent.
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Stepped-up federal funding resulted in more seniors receiving training in how to stop Medicare fraud in 2012, but the latest annual survey of the $20 million program shows it produced $134,000 in actual savings.
Many illegal schemes rely on seniors who aren't savvy in how fraudsters and opportunists can use Medicare numbers to bill for care and equipment that is unneeded or never delivered. The Obama administration greatly increased the funding in 2010, 2011 and 2012 to bolster the so-called Senior Medicare Patrol program, which educates them with a branch in each U.S. state, plus Washington, D.C. and three territories.
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Technology industry association leaders who testified Thursday before a House subcommittee hearing on whether legislation is needed for data breach reporting called for Congress to pre-empt state laws on data breaches. But at least one witness opposed such preemption.
“There is a growing and exceptionally strong case to be made for the creation of a national data breach notification framework that supersedes state data breach laws,” said Dan Liutikas, chief legal officer of Washington- based Computing Technology Industry Association, a trade group for the computer hardware manufacturers, software developers and other information technology specialists.
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HHS' inspector general has unveiled a large red button on the Internet that will cost hospitals and drug companies thousands or perhaps millions of dollars if they press it.
Yet, press it they might. The OIG unveiled a new online portal this week for healthcare companies to turn themselves in for violating some of the harshest and most sweeping federal laws on healthcare, including the anti-kickback statute, the False Claims Act, and the Stark law. More than $280 million has been sent to the government through the 800 self-disclosures since 1998, averaging $350,000 per filing.
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Rogue Internet pharmacies dispense medications without prescriptions, sell drugs that are counterfeit, expired or improperly labeled, and violate a slew of other laws, a new Government Accountability Office report says.
Such pharmacies have led to investigations by state and federal regulators, who told the GAO that there are “substantial challenges” in investigating and prosecuting these outfits, many of which are internationally based.
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Delays in key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last week last week are spawning congressional actions this week.
The Obama administration's surprise July 2 announcement that it will delay for one year the requirement that large employers provide qualifying insurance coverage for their workers or face tax penalties spurred told-you-sos from Republicans in Congress.
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Delays in key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last week last week are spawning congressional actions this week.
The Obama administration's surprise July 2 announcement that it will delay for one year the requirement that large employers provide qualifying insurance coverage for their workers or face tax penalties spurred told-you-sos from Republicans in Congress.
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