Health Care

Health Care Industry Pay Practices Subject to Increased Department of Labor Scrutiny

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 15:11:58 -0400

The Department of Labor ("DOL") recently announced an initiative to promote compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") in the health care industry. This comes after a finding by the DOL that many hospitals and nursing homes do not pay proper overtime to nurses and other employees who work more than 40 hours a week. In addition to the increase in DOL enforcement proceedings, class action plaintiff lawyers are sending mailings to the homes of registered nurses across the country in search of hospitals to sue for wage/hour violations. As a health care industry employer you may be at risk and your potential liability for FLSA violations could total in the hundreds of thousands of dollars or more in back pay and penalties.

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Sweeping Changes to Certificate of Need Laws

Mon, 24 May 2010 14:32:14 -0400

The Connecticut Legislature, at the prompting of the Department of Public Health, Division of Office of Health Care Access (OHCA), passed a comprehensive certificate of need (CON) reform bill. If the Governor signs the bill, and all indications are that she will, as this bill is part of the State budget bill, after October 1, 2010, Hospitals and other health care facilities must comply with the new requirements included in Senate Bill 494 (LCO No. 5638): "AN ACT MAKING ADJUSTMENTS TO STATE EXPENDITURES FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2011, as amended." This bill will have a substantial impact both positively and negatively on all providers of healthcare in the industry.

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Former Member of U.S. Senate Legislative Staff and VP for Government Affairs, Generic Pharmaceutical Association Joins Brown Rudnick’s Washington, DC Office

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 13:32:49 -0400

Brown Rudnick, a premier international law firm, today announced that Lisa Kay Layman has joined the firm’s Washington DC office as a Director in the Government Law & Strategies Group. Ms. Layman has over a decade of experience in political and legislative affairs, and has a comprehensive knowledge of health policy issues. As a senior policy advisor to several U.S. Senators, Ms. Layman has been involved in drafting, analyzing and negotiating legislation involving Medicare, Medicaid, prescription drugs, managed care, health information technology, and private health insurance.

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COBRA Health Insurance Continuation Subsidy: What Employers Need to Know

jhauser@brownrudnick.com (James L. Hauser) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 13:30:52 -0400

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (better known as the "Stimulus Bill") which was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009 includes a nine-month 65% federal subsidy of COBRA premiums for qualified individuals and an expansion of health care coverage continuation rights for individuals involuntarily terminated between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. The effective date of this portion of the Stimulus Bill, referred to herein as the COBRA Subsidy, is March 1, 2009, but applies to any full or short period of coverage after February 17, 2009, when the law was signed.

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Model COBRA Notices Issued

jhauser@brownrudnick.com (James L. Hauser) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 13:29:01 -0400

The Department of Labor ("DOL") issued model COBRA notices to help employers comply with the requirements of the COBRA Subsidy signed into law by President Obama as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the "Act"). The Act provides for a nine-month 65% federal subsidy of COBRA premiums for qualified individuals and an expansion of health care coverage continuation rights for individuals involuntarily terminated between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. Qualified individuals must be provided with one of the model notices and corresponding election forms, as appropriate, no later than April 18, 2009.

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Stimulus Bill Expands HIPAA Privacy and Security Requirements

Tue, 7 Apr 2009 14:10:38 -0400

In addition to the massive spending provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the “ARRA” or the “Stimulus Bill”) the bill significantly expands the applicability of the Privacy and Security Rules of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). These changes are likely to have a profound impact throughout the healthcare industry. Title XIII of the ARRA, entitled “Health Information Technology,” also known as the “Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act),” purports to rectify certain perceived weaknesses within the privacy and security regime created by HIPAA. While there are a number of provisions with different effective dates, covered entities and business associates must comply with most of the new provisions discussed below by February 10, 2010.

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