Healthcare Law Blog

Healthcare Providers: It’s Time to Resume Non-Emergency Services

Governor Beshear has announced that as of April 27, providers may resume non-urgent/emergent healthcare services and diagnostic radiology and lab services in: hospital outpatient settings, healthcare clinics and medical offices, physical therapy settings and chiropractic offices, optometrists, and dental offices (with enhanced aerosol protections).  More >

Kentucky Healthcare Providers: SB 150 Gives Some Liability Buffer and More

In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, there is still good news to be found for healthcare providers. On March 30th, Gov. Beshear signed Senate Bill 150, a broad coronavirus response measure that touches on everything from licensing fees to alcohol sales.  Tucked into the bill is a provision that limits the liability of healthcare providers who treat COVID-19 patients in good faith. More >

CMS Expands Accelerated and Advance Payment Program for COVID-19 Emergency

As part of the CARES Act, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has expanded the Accelerated and Advance Payment Program to a larger group of Part A providers and Part B suppliers. The full fact sheet on the expansion is available from CMS here, but we’ve summarized the significant points below. More >

KBML Reminds Physicians of Exceptions to Prescribing Rules for Controlled Substances During Declaration of Emergency

The KBML has issued an advisory opinion on prescribing requirements for controlled substances, reminding licensees that 201 KAR 9:260 Section 2(2) addresses situations when a physician is unable to conform to professional standards for prescribing of controlled substances due to circumstances beyond the physician’s control or when the physician makes a professional determination that it is not appropriate to comply with a specific standard. Given the “current but temporary state of emergency,” the KBML notes that there may be circumstances where it would not be appropriate to require a patient to come into the office prior to refilling a prescription. More >

Getting Long-Term Lost with Compliance for Long Term Care? OIG Has A Roadmap

Long Term Care (“LTC”) facilities have been a renewed area of focus for regulators in recent years, due to changes in Medicare and the potential for harm to a vulnerable population at the hands of bad actors. In April of 2019, for instance, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) put out a Data Brief with the ominous headline, “Trends in Deficiencies at Nursing Homes Show That Improvements Are Needed To Ensure the Health and Safety of Residents.” Unfortunately, this renewed focus exponentially increases the need for a push to instill compliance as a key tenet of a facility’s culture. Luckily, in 2000 and again in 2008, the OIG released a very clear roadmap for compliance that’s still reliable today. We’ll hit some of the highlights. More >

New Kentucky Healthcare Laws Now in Effect – Legislative Developments for Healthcare Practitioners

This article originally appeared in MD Update Magazine #123 in September of 2019.

2019 was a slow year for healthcare-related developments in the Kentucky legislature. Nothing was enacted that was as major – or as controversial – within the healthcare community as 2017’s medical review panels law. A few noteworthy laws take effect this year that might otherwise fly under the radar. More >

A Physician’s Guide to Employment Contracts with Hospitals and Health Systems

As hospitals and health systems continue moves toward clinical integration, more physicians are being employed by hospitals and health systems rather than practicing medicine in their own private practices.  The trend toward direct hospital employment of physicians accelerated after 2012 and it appears that the trend will continue as both hospitals and physicians navigate regulatory, reimbursement, and operational challenges in the future.  When considering employment by a hospital or health system, physicians should be mindful of various provisions that are often contained in physician employment agreements and how these provisions may impact the physician’s professional practice and personal life.  Here are important issues to consider when evaluating whether to enter into an employment agreement with a hospital or health system.  More >

A New Opportunity: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Recognizes the Full Potential of Ambulance Crews and Services

In mid-February 2019, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”), Innovation Center and the Department for Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced a ground-breaking payment and medical services initiative for ambulance providers called “Emergency Triage, Treat and Transport” (the “ET3”). This new model is the first step in allowing providers of Emergency Medical Services to finally “take off the gloves” to fully utilize both their medical skills and unique patient knowledge to implement a more efficient and effective care model. More >

Compliance is Crucial

This article appeared in the December edition of MD-UPDATE, available at  http://www.md-update.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/MD-Update-Issue-118/#?page=8

In the current legal enforcement environment, it is crucial that healthcare providers prioritize compliance initiatives and programs in order to avoid illegal practices that may result in large financial penalties and both criminal and civil liability.   More >

#MeToo in Healthcare: The Time to Act is Now

This article appeared in the November edition of Medical News, available at https://www.medicalnews.md/metoo-in-healthcare-the-time-to-act-is-now/.

The #MeToo movement has sparked a momentous conversation in American life, but the pressure on the healthcare industry to address workplace harassment has been in place for some time now. For example, in 2012, a California Physician assistant was awarded $168 million by a jury (later settled for an undisclosed amount) after filing numerous complaints alleging sexual harassment and patient safety issues, actions which a jury believed led to her firing from a hospital and later, retaliation.[i] This is one of a number of examples of verdicts and out-of-court settlements in the millions of dollars, all due to sexual harassment in a healthcare workplace. These are not outliers. More >