In the Spring of 2025, two federal courts issued decisions interpreting the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS), with one court narrowing the conduct that is prohibited while the other court refused to do so. Generally, the AKS prohibits paying remuneration in exchange for inducing referrals for services or items covered by federal health care programs, such…Read More
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) became law on July 4, 2025. The OBBBA has a broad reach over many areas of the government and the economy, including several provisions that impact health care providers. Many of the health care provisions either increase or decrease overall federal health care spending, and Congress framed those…Read More
The Maryland General Assembly’s 2025 legislative Session concluded with the enactment of many health care laws that will impact health care facilities, providers, insurers, and patients in the State. Here are some of the highlights from the 2025 Session. Artificial Intelligence A new law was enacted concerning the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by certain…Read More
Ozempic® is the band name of one of the increasingly available glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, created to treat Type 2 diabetes but increasingly used to promote extreme weight loss. GLP-1s include semaglutide (brand names Ozempic®, Wegovy®, and Rybelsus®) and tirzepatide (brand names Monjaro® and Zepbound®), two drugs that, until recently, were on the Food…Read More
The explosive growth of artificial intelligence (AI) offers many opportunities to increase efficiency in health care delivery, allowing providers to focus more of their time on delivering quality care, but providers must thoughtfully navigate long standing privacy laws when deploying new technology. An increasingly common application of AI in the health care space is ambient…Read More
On November 12, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a new final rule on “Premerger Notification; Reporting and Waiting Period Requirement”. This rule (the New Rule) addresses areas the FTC identified as deficiencies under the current implementation of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR). HSR obligates premerger reporting requirements for parties in certain…Read More
In the last days of the Biden administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued updated compliance program guidance for nursing facilities for the first time in 16 years. The Nursing Facility Industry Segment-Specific Compliance Program Guidance (Program Guidance), while non-binding, provides critical insight into how the…Read More
On September 9, 2024, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury issued an updated Mental Health Parity final rule (Final Rule), setting forth new requirements for compliance with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) as amended by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. MHPAEA requires large group health plans…Read More
Maryland is one of only two states, along with Vermont, launching the first cohort of the new Advancing All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development (AHEAD) total cost of care model which will begin next year following a planning period already underway. Maryland has experimented with various unique payment models for decades, most recently the Maryland…Read More
In 2022, the Maryland General Assembly passed The Climate Solutions Now Act (CSNA), which is one of the most ambitious examples of climate change legislation in the country. As a result of the CSNA, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) was tasked with creating new regulations, requiring owners of certain large buildings (covered buildings)…Read More