The Healthcare Real Estate Team at Sheppard Mullin attended the SoCal Healthcare Real Estate Summit on October 18, 2023. This event offered valuable insights into critical issues for health systems and those involved in catering to their real estate requirements. Here are the key takeaways from the summit:Continue Reading Transforming Healthcare Real Estate: Insights from the SoCal Summit
Starting January 1, 2024, healthcare facilities and provider organizations engaging in certain transactions in Illinois, such as mergers and acquisitions, will have new reporting requirements. Illinois recently joined a growing number of states, including California and New York, in requiring expanded oversight and transparency of transactions involving healthcare facilities and provider organizations. Illinois’ Public Act 103-0526 (the “Act”), enacted in August 2023, amends the Illinois Antitrust Act, the State Finance Act and the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Act to increase oversight by the Illinois Attorney General’s (the “IL AG”) of certain “covered transactions” for healthcare facilities and provider organizations.Continue Reading Illinois Proposes Heightened Oversight for Healthcare Transactions
Note: First published by ALM / Law.com in The Intellectual Property StrategistContinue Reading Medical Technology – Recent Decisions at the Federal Circuit and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board
The expanded use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the delivery of health care continues to receive increased attention from lawmakers across the country. Although AI regulation is still in its early developmental stages, there are various efforts underway to address the unintended negative consequences stirred by AI technology, particularly in health care and other key sectors.[1] Of particular interest are regulatory efforts to restrict discrimination through AI and related technologies.Continue Reading At a Glance: Legal Efforts to Limit Discrimination Through AI
The digital health market, as represented by the HLTH showroom floor, is packed with companies focused on care coordination and care management for various health and wellness specialties, diseases, and chronic conditions, as well as organizations focused on increasing consumer access to various types of healthcare. Despite the growth of data analytics and interoperability, the constellation of companies and points of access are decentralized and disconnected. While the abundance of choice and options enhancing accessibility for healthcare consumers are positive indicators of progress in this space, the lack of holistic care coordination across this fragmented landscape affects patient outcomes, causes patient confusion and decision fatigue, and leads to potential care and resource duplication and waste.Continue Reading At HLTH 2023: The Digital Health Symphony, A Care Coordination Orchestra with No Maestro
At the heart of our healthcare system lies two core, yet competing, philosophies: (1) clinical decisions must not be driven by profit, and (2) dollars drive behavior and, by harnessing this revenue, clinical outcomes can be vastly improved while the costs to the system of unnecessary care can be dramatically reduced. Here at HLTH, venture capital firm General Catalyst announced it is seeking to change that paradigm with the launch of its Health Assurance Transformation Corporation (HATCo), seeking to transform healthcare with global risk arrangements while leveraging data and technology. Continue Reading At HLTH 2023: General Catalyst’s HATCo Introduces a Radically Ambitious and Transformative Model for Healthcare
The government buys billions of dollars in healthcare-related goods and services every year, and no government procurement is perfect. In a business where every contract award matters, healthcare contractors should be aware that they may have a second chance at winning a contract if the government agency made a material error in its procurement process. The question disappointed healthcare contractors should ask is whether the agency acted unreasonably in its evaluation and selection of the awardee. If the answer is “yes”—or even “maybe”—healthcare companies may file a bid protest at the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) or the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”) challenging the award. If successful, the agency will often need to reevaluate proposals and make a new award, giving protestors another opportunity to be selected.Continue Reading A Second Chance to Win Your Government Healthcare Contract
The status of the independent dispute resolution (IDR) process under the No Surprises Act (NSA) is ever-evolving. Providers are waiting on the sidelines as cases weave their way through the court system. While the IDR process is currently on hold, it is incumbent on providers, payors, and individuals to remain vigilant and stay abreast of the forthcoming changes.Continue Reading Sheppard Mullin Webinar – No Surprises Act: Litigation Update and Recent Guidance
On August 24, 2023, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas again largely ruled in favor of the Texas Medical Association and other plaintiffs (including air ambulance providers) and vacated certain regulations[1] and related guidance concerning how the “Qualified Payment Amount” (“QPA”) – one of the factors in the arbitration of out-of-network disputes – is calculated under the No Surprises Act (the “Act”).[2] The Court also vacated certain rules specific to the QPA and Federal Independent Dispute Resolution (“IDR”) process for out-of-network air ambulance services.Continue Reading Another No Surprises Act Update: Texas Court Vacates Rules and Guidance Related to the “Qualified Payment Amount”
On August 3, 2023, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas once again ruled in favor of the Texas Medical Association[1] and vacated portions of the guidance related to (i) the administrative fee for the Independent Dispute Resolution (“IDR”) process created by the No Surprises Act (the “Act”) and (ii) the “batching” of claims for the IDR.[2] The Department of Health and Human Services promptly announced that the IDR process is temporarily suspended and will not be available for out-of-network disputes until further notice.Continue Reading No Surprises Act Update: Federal IDR Temporarily Suspended After Court Vacates Increased Administrative Fees and Rule for Batching Claims