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August 02, 2024
6th Circ. Upholds Federal Hospital's Win In Infant Death Suit
The Sixth Circuit has affirmed a judgment in favor of a U.S. government-funded hospital in a suit by a woman alleging malpractice caused the death of her son shortly after birth, finding the evidence supported a Kentucky federal judge's conclusion that doctors did not neglect the woman or the infant during delivery.
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August 02, 2024
US Cannabis Policy Thwarts Research, Health Officials Say
A recent report from federal health regulators confirms what cannabis reform advocates have long said, that placing marijuana in the most restrictive tier under the federal Controlled Substances Act has hindered researchers' ability to study the drug's potential benefits and risks.
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August 02, 2024
McKinsey's $78M Opioid Deal With Health Plans Gets OK
A California federal judge said Friday he'll approve McKinsey & Co. Inc.'s $78 million deal to resolve claims on behalf of approximately 42,000 third-party payors, with class counsel receiving $15.1 million in fees, after the initial settlement was tweaked due to objections from some plaintiffs' attorneys.
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August 02, 2024
2nd Circ. Backs Conviction Over Fake-Therapy Scheme
The Second Circuit on Friday refused to overturn the conviction of a therapist who was found guilty of bilking a New York state program for developmentally disabled children, saying the trial court didn't err in declining to excuse a juror who had loose ties to a government witness.
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August 02, 2024
Judge Rejects Intervenors In Religious Workers' Vax Deal Bid
Women who opted out of or objected to a recently vacated $10.5 million deal between Ascension Health Alliance and workers who allege the company retaliated or fired them for seeking COVID-19 vaccine exemptions cannot now intervene in the renewed bid for settlement approval, a Michigan federal judge has ruled, finding their request untimely.
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August 02, 2024
Family Denied Quick Win In Insurer's $2M Nursing Home Suit
An insurer for a now-bankrupt Georgia nursing home doesn't have to cover a $2.1 million judgment awarded to the family of a woman who died in the facility's care, a federal judge ruled Friday, finding an agreement between the facility and the family released the facility from all liability.
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August 02, 2024
Patients Ink $1M Deal To Settle Pharmacy Data-Breach Claims
A home-delivery pharmacy service struck by a data breach in 2021 has agreed to pay $1 million to settle a class action brought by plaintiffs whose personal information was compromised, according to a Friday filing.
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August 02, 2024
3rd Circ. Backs Ex-NJ Firefighter's $50M Drug Fraud Sentence
The Third Circuit backed the eight-year prison sentence handed to a former New Jersey firefighter convicted for his role in a $50 million healthcare fraud scheme, rejecting his argument he was wrongly punished for taking his case to trial.
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August 02, 2024
4 ERISA Excessive Health Fee Suits To Watch
The Third Circuit will decide whether to revive a suit from MetLife workers alleging their pharmacy benefits were mismanaged, while suits proceed in district court against Wells Fargo and Johnson & Johnson alleging they violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act via high drug costs a pharmacy benefit manager charged workers. Here, Law360 looks at four cases involving claims that employers violated ERISA by charging high healthcare costs — including for prescription drugs — that attorneys are watching.
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August 02, 2024
Colo. Appeals Panel Rejects Lower Tax Rate For Hospital
A Colorado rehabilitation hospital should be classified as a commercial property for tax purposes because it was predominantly designed for its services and not for residency, a state appeals court said, reversing a state assessment board.
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August 02, 2024
Privacy & Cybersecurity Midyear Report: 4 Areas To Watch
New York and Colorado shook up the data privacy landscape by enacting groundbreaking laws protecting children online and clamping down on high-risk uses of artificial intelligence during the first half of 2024, and both states and the federal government are expected to devote considerable attention to these areas in the coming months.
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August 02, 2024
Akin Debuts AI Law & Regulation Info Tracker
Global BigLaw firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP launched a tracker to help monitor changing policies related to artificial intelligence in various fields including intellectual property, data privacy, health and national security.
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August 02, 2024
PTAB Told To Punish Mylan For Allegedly Breaking Fintiv Vow
Novo Nordisk is urging the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to sanction Mylan for pursuing claims to invalidate a patent covering the blockbuster diabetes and weight loss drug Ozempic in Delaware district court, despite an explicit promise not to do so.
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August 02, 2024
More Tribes Suing Social Media For Teen Addiction, Suicides
Two more Native American tribes have filed suit against a slew of social media companies, alleging that over the past decade they've contributed to a growing body of research that directly links their platforms to a youth mental health crisis that's plaguing Indian Country.
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August 02, 2024
Monitor Says HCA Possibly Flouted Promises In Hospital Deal
The independent monitor tasked with ensuring HCA Healthcare has complied with an agreement that cemented its $1.5 billion acquisition of a North Carolina health system has said the for-profit network may have deviated from those promises, according to a new report.
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August 02, 2024
3 Candidates In Running To Replace Washington AG
Washington voters on Tuesday will narrow the candidates aspiring to become the state's next attorney general, choosing from among a former U.S. attorney, a state lawmaker who was a county prosecutor, as well as a mayor and attorney who is a gun rights advocate.
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August 02, 2024
Four Plaintiffs Tossed From Merck Gardasil Vaccine MDL
A North Carolina federal judge has thrown out claims from four patients in multidistrict litigation alleging they suffered injuries as a result of taking Merck's Gardasil HPV vaccine, saying three of them didn't file a petition with the federal vaccine injury program on time, while the fourth never filed his petition at all.
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August 02, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen insurance broker Marsh sue the collapsed Greensill Bank, the former chair of the Islamic Students Association of Britain pursue a defamation case against the Jewish Chronicle, Berkshire Hathaway and Lloyd's face action from a shipping company, and alleged fraudster Ronald Bauer hit a loan company with a claim. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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August 01, 2024
MultiPlan, Insurance Cos. Must Face Collusion MDL In Illinois
The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation on Thursday centralized in Chicago six class actions challenging the MultiPlan pricing tools that healthcare providers allege are used by UnitedHealth, Aetna, Cigna and other major insurers to systematically underpay out-of-network providers, with more than a dozen similar lawsuits potentially tagging along.
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August 01, 2024
Staffing Agency Not Covered In Pay Law Row, Insurer Says
An insurer told a Washington federal court that it has no obligation to cover a home healthcare staffing agency in an underlying proposed class action accusing the agency of violating the Washington Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, maintaining that the underlying allegations fall outside the scope of its policy.
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August 01, 2024
House Workforce Chair Wants Mental Health Parity Regs Axed
The Republican chairwoman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee told the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday it should not finalize regulations that aim to encourage employer compliance with a law requiring equitable mental health and substance use disorder treatments coverage, stating the rule burdens businesses.
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August 01, 2024
No Sanctions In Mom's $13.4M Feud With Conn. Group Home
A Connecticut state court judge has ruled that no sanctions are immediately necessary in a post-verdict feud between a group home accused of dodging depositions and an 81-year-old mother seeking to collect a $13.4 million judgment surrounding her son's death.
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August 01, 2024
AliveCor Asks 9th Circ. To Revive Apple Watch Antitrust Case
Medical monitoring startup AliveCor Inc. told the Ninth Circuit that Apple Inc. should not be immunized from antitrust claims over the removal of access to heart rate data on the Apple Watch because the change was intended to block competition and not improve the device.
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August 01, 2024
Pioneer Health Approved For $450K To Fund Ch. 11 Sale Plan
Bankrupt clinic operator Pioneer Health Inc. received approval from a Delaware court to borrow $450,000 as it pursues a sale of its assets, but agreed to delay a hearing on a proposed Chapter 11 plan to give the company time to update the filings to reflect its new track.
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August 01, 2024
Utah High Court Upholds Pause On State Abortion Ban
The Utah Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a pause on the state's near-total abortion ban while a constitutional challenge to the law proceeds, agreeing with a lower court's conclusion that the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah had standing to bring its challenge.
Expert Analysis
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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.
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Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
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9th Circ. Clarifies ERISA Preemption For Healthcare Industry
The Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in Bristol SL Holdings v. Cigna notably clarifies the broad scope of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's preemption of certain state law causes of action, standing to benefit payors and health plan administrators, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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Unpacking NY's Revised Hospital Cybersecurity Rule Proposal
The New York State Department of Health's recently revised hospital cybersecurity rule proposal highlights increased expectations and scrutiny around cybersecurity in the healthcare sector, while adapting to both recent industry developments and public comments, say Christine Moundas and Gideon Zvi Palte at Ropes & Gray.
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Short-Term Takeaways From CMS' New Long-Term Care Rules
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' new final rule on nursing home staffing minimums imposes controversial regulatory challenges that will likely face significant litigation, but for now, stakeholders will need to prepare for increased staffing expectations and more specialized facility assessments without meaningful funding, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Updated Federal Rules Can Improve Product Liability MDLs
The recent amendment of a federal evidence rule regarding expert testimony and the proposal of a civil rule on managing early discovery in multidistrict legislation hold great promise for promoting the uniform and efficient processes that high-stakes product liability cases particularly need, say Alan Klein and William Heaston at Duane Morris.
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Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent
As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.