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July 12, 2024
Ex-Ga. Insurance Chief Gets 3½ Years For Kickback Scheme
John Oxendine, the former four-term Georgia insurance commissioner who pled guilty this year to working with a doctor to run a multimillion-dollar medical testing kickback scheme, was hit with a 3½-year prison sentence by a Georgia federal judge Friday.
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July 12, 2024
FTC Says Abandoned Novant Deal Moots Lower Court Loss
The Federal Trade Commission is looking to unravel a North Carolina federal judge's order allowing Novant's planned $320 million hospital merger to advance after it subsequently abandoned the deal, telling the Fourth Circuit the appeal is moot and the order should be vacated.
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July 11, 2024
Wash. Justices Revive Proposed Class Suit Over Nurse Wages
The Washington Supreme Court on Thursday said a nurse's wage theft suit against a hospital can proceed even though his claims are the same as the ones lodged by his union in a tossed suit, finding it would be in the best interest of both efficiency and justice.
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July 11, 2024
Judge Won't Permit Florida's Trans Care Ban Pending Appeal
A federal judge denied Florida's request Thursday to pause a court order blocking a state law that bans or restricts gender-affirming care for transgender minors and adults while it challenges the ruling at the Eleventh Circuit, finding the state hasn't shown it would be harmed by the law's stagnation.
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July 11, 2024
Senate Clears Patent Bill Aiming To Lower Drug Prices
The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed a bill that would pump the brakes on the ability of pharmaceutical companies to steer patients away from generic versions of a drug, a measure that lawmakers said would lower drug costs.
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July 11, 2024
Panel Says Kansas BCBS Unit Can't Face Rehab Suit In Colo.
A Kansas Blue Cross Blue Shield unit can't be sued in Colorado for terminating the coverage of a patient who was receiving treatment for an autoimmune syndrome, a state appellate panel ruled Thursday.
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July 11, 2024
Cigna Objects To Ch. 11 Nursing Home Asset Sale Proposal
Cigna Health and Life Insurance Co. asked a Pennsylvania bankruptcy judge to reject a sale process proposed by some of the debtors in a Pittsburgh-area nursing home network's consolidated Chapter 11 case, saying it gave the debtors too much leeway to change what contracts they will maintain.
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July 11, 2024
Social Media Arbitration Row Not For La. Court, 5th Circ. Told
A coalition of researchers told the Fifth Circuit that a Louisiana court was wrong to rule that a proposed class of plaintiffs who claim the group was behind social media censorship in 2020 did not have to arbitrate their claims, arguing that the court should have weighed whether it could even hear the case before considering arbitration.
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July 11, 2024
NJ Justices Back Expert Report In Mother's Suit Over Death
The New Jersey Supreme Court on Thursday reinstated a lawsuit against a Garden State hospital by the mother of a diabetic patient who died, saying the trial court erred in dismissing the case on grounds that an affidavit of merit was insufficient.
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July 11, 2024
Signify, Merger Partner Clash In Chancery Over $50M Earnout
An attorney for former Caravan Health Inc. stockholder representatives told a Delaware vice chancellor on Thursday that acquirer Signify Health Inc. sabotaged Caravan's business in order to scuttle an obligation to add as much as $50 million in performance-based "earnouts" to the $250 million merger price.
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July 11, 2024
4 Big Gender-Affirming Care Decisions From 2024's 1st Half
The U.S. Supreme Court allowed an Idaho law banning gender-affirming care for minors to become effective, the Eleventh Circuit upheld a trial court win for a transgender public safety employee in a healthcare discrimination suit and a Florida federal judge blocked as unconstitutional a state law restricting gender-affirming care for minors and adults.
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July 11, 2024
9th Circ. Signals Dr.'s Vax-Refusal Case Deserves New Chance
Ninth Circuit judges signaled Thursday that they were likely to revive a doctor's case claiming he was wrongfully fired from his Washington State University residency for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccination, with two judges questioning if the school went far enough to accommodate his religious beliefs.
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July 11, 2024
Staffing Claim Against Kaiser Will Go To Trial, Judge Says
A United Food and Commercial Workers local can continue litigating its claim that Kaiser Permanente affiliates violated provisions in labor contracts guaranteeing adequate staffing, a Colorado federal judge ruled, saying there are outstanding issues to be resolved at trial.
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July 11, 2024
Calif.'s Insulin Cost Suit Belongs In Fed. Court, 9th Circ. Told
Express Scripts and Caremark PCSHealth urged the Ninth Circuit on Thursday to reverse a lower court's order sending California's antitrust suit over skyrocketing insulin prices back to state court, with both appellants' counsel arguing the state's claims involve disputes over federal contracts and regulations that must be resolved in federal court.
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July 11, 2024
Rite Aid Gets OK To Sell Interests In Its Loan To MedImpact
A New Jersey bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved Rite Aid's sale of most of its interests in a $567 million loan that it made, the proceeds of which it will distribute to creditors under its Chapter 11 reorganization plan.
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July 11, 2024
$435M Yale Hospital Merger Case Set For December Jury Trial
A lawsuit claiming that Yale New Haven Health Corp. is trying to back out of a $435 million deal to buy three Connecticut hospitals will go to a bench trial in December after a state court judge approved the parties' proposed schedule.
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July 11, 2024
Opiate MDL Judge Flags Evidence Preservation Shortfall
An Ohio federal judge has said "at least some" of the plaintiff local government entities in four chosen bellwether cases against pharmacy benefit managers for the multidistrict litigation over the opioid epidemic failed to preserve documents and evidence for trial, warning the parties he may replace those cases.
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July 11, 2024
Chancery Fast-Tracks Blue Cross Data Co. Suit, Denies TRO
An independent licensee of Blue Cross Blue Shield Association that accused a customer of sharing confidential data with industry competitor Cigna Corp. got its Delaware Chancery Court lawsuit fast-tracked Thursday but failed to get immediate injunctive relief because the harms it alleged were too "speculative."
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July 11, 2024
Trans Worker Seeks Facial Hair Removal In ERISA Suit
A transgender woman said her employer's health benefit plan administered by UnitedHealthcare refused to cover facial hair removal as part of her gender-affirming care in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, according to a complaint filed in Washington federal court.
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July 11, 2024
Foley & Lardner Adds 6-Atty Corporate Team From K&L Gates
Foley & Lardner LLP announced Thursday that it has boosted its corporate and healthcare offerings with three partners and three associates from K&L Gates LLP who will practice from the firm's existing locations in Dallas and Miami and a new shop in Raleigh, North Carolina.
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July 11, 2024
Sens. Say Medical Debt Acute 'Symptom' Of Chronic Issues
A Senate health committee panel said that medical debt is a "symptom" of high costs in the healthcare system in a hearing on Thursday, with lawmakers and federal agencies proposing solutions to stabilize the issue that impacts consumers and providers.
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July 11, 2024
Earned Wealth Secures $200M, Buys Peer Thomas Doll
DLA Piper-advised Earned Wealth announced on Thursday that it received a $200 million growth investment from growth equity investors while simultaneously unveiling its acquisition of fellow medical professional-focused financial services firm Thomas Doll.
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July 11, 2024
Orrick Adds Wilson Sonsini, Hooper Lundy Healthcare Attys
Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP has hired seven new attorneys, including three partners who joined its life sciences and health tech platform in the firm's Washington, D.C., and Boston offices, the firm announced Thursday.
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July 10, 2024
Santa Clara Hospital Can't Fully Shake Online Tracking Suit
A California federal judge has refused to toss a proposed class action accusing Santa Clara Valley Medical Center of unlawfully sharing sensitive data with Meta and Google through online tracking tools embedded in its website and patient portal, rejecting the contention that the plaintiff had consented to these disclosures by agreeing to policies required to use the services.
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July 10, 2024
Rite Aid, DOJ Craft $410M Settlement Of Opioid Sale Claims
Rite Aid agreed to a nearly $410 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the bulk of which will be an unsecured claim in the company's Chapter 11 case, that will put to bed allegations the pharmacy chain dispensed opioids illegally, the DOJ announced Wednesday.
Expert Analysis
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Protecting Trade Secrets In US, EU Gov't Agency Submissions
Attorneys at Mintz compare U.S. and European Union trade secret laws, and how proprietary information in confidential submissions to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency is protected in the face of third-party information requests under government transparency laws.
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Recruitment Trends In Emerging Law Firm Frontiers
BigLaw firms are facing local recruitment challenges as they increasingly establish offices in cities outside of the major legal hubs, requiring them to weigh various strategies for attracting talent that present different risks and benefits, says Tom Hanlon at Buchanan Law.
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Series
Glassblowing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
I never expected that glassblowing would strongly influence my work as an attorney, but it has taught me the importance of building a solid foundation for your work, learning from others and committing to a lifetime of practice, says Margaret House at Kalijarvi Chuzi.
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Careful Data Governance Is A Must Amid Enforcement Focus
Federal and state regulators' heightened focus on privacy enforcement, including the Federal Trade Commission's recent guidance on consumer protection in the car industry, highlight the importance of proactive risk management, compliance and data governance, say Jason Priebe and Danny Riley at Seyfarth.
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5 Critical Factors Driving Settlement Values In Cyber Litigation
Recent ransomware incidents and their legal repercussions offer five valuable insights into the determinants of settlement values in cyberattack-related litigation, and understanding these trends and their implications can better prepare organizations for the potential legal fallout from future breaches, says Peter Kamminga at JAMS.
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Money, Money, Money: Limiting White Collar Wealth Evidence
As courts increasingly recognize that allowing unfettered evidence of wealth could prejudice a jury against a defendant, white collar defense counsel should consider several avenues for excluding visual evidence of a lavish lifestyle at trial, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.
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How Associates Can Build A Professional Image
As hybrid work arrangements become the norm in the legal industry, early-career attorneys must be proactive in building and maintaining a professional presence in both physical and digital settings, ensuring that their image aligns with their long-term career goals, say Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners and Estelle Winsett at Estelle Winsett Professional Image Consulting.
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High Court's Abortion Pill Ruling Shuts Out Future Challenges
The U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous ruling in U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine maintains the status quo for mifepristone access and rejects the plaintiffs' standing theories so thoroughly that future challenges from states or other plaintiffs are unlikely to be viable, say Jaime Santos and Annaka Nava at Goodwin.
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5 Steps To Navigating State Laws On Healthcare Transactions
As more states pass legislation requiring healthcare-transaction notice, private equity investors and other deal parties should evaluate the new laws and consider ways to mitigate their effects, say Carol Loepere and Nicole Aiken-Shaban at Reed Smith.
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Orange Book Warnings Highlight FTC's Drug Price Focus
In light of heightened regulatory scrutiny surrounding drug pricing and the Federal Trade Commission's activity in the recent Teva v. Amneal case, branded drug manufacturers should expect the FTC's campaign against allegedly improper Orange Book listings to continue, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age
As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
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PBM Takeaways From Proposed Telehealth Flexibility Bill
The U.S. House of Representatives' proposal to extend certain telehealth flexibilities signals a robust commitment to expanding telehealth access, though its plan to offset additional expenses through pharmacy benefit manager reform could lead to some industry consolidation, say attorneys at Mintz.
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A Plaintiffs-Side Approach To Cochlear Implant Cases
As the number of cochlear implants in the U.S. continues to grow, some will inevitably fail — especially considering that many recalled implants remain in use — plaintiffs attorneys should proactively prepare for litigation over defective implants, says David Shoop at Shoop.
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Inside Antitrust Agencies' Rollup And Serial Acquisition Moves
The recent request for public comments on serial acquisitions and rollup strategies from the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Justice Department mark the antitrust agencies' continued focus on actions that fall below premerger reporting thresholds, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.