Arguments were heard in the case of United States ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Inc., No. 21-1052 to determine whether and on what statutory grounds, the government, after initially declining to intervene, may subsequently intervene and dismiss a qui-tam False Claims Act (“FCA”) suit. The Court’s decision will resolve a dispute regarding the balance of power between an individual whistleblower and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”).
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court upheld a D.C. Circuit Court decision vacating a policy of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) that would have “dramatically – and retroactively – reduced payments to hospitals serving low-income patients.” Azar v. Allina Health Services, 587 U.S. __ at 1 (2019). The Supreme Court’s Allina opinion (“Op.” or the “Decision”) is critically important for hospitals that rely on Medicare disproportionate share (“DSH”) payments and has broader implications for the way that CMS issues the voluminous guidance that the agency applies to Medicare-participating providers and suppliers and other CMS-contracted entities.
Continue Reading SCOTUS Rejects CMS DSH Policy, Calls CMS Guidance Practices Into Question