Digital Health & Technology
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November 15, 2023
NY Hospital Cyber Regs A Balm, Not Cure, For Security Woes
New York state's proposals for addressing hospital cybersecurity — and providing millions in funding for security upgrades — could help some of the state's smallest hospitals catch up on the latest safeguards and minimum standards against ransomware attacks and data breaches, but they're far from a cure-all for the incidents plaguing health care.
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November 15, 2023
UnitedHealth Uses AI To Deny Patient Services, Suit Says
UnitedHealth knowingly uses an artificial intelligence service with a high error rate to override physician recommendations and deny elderly patients care owed to them through Medicare plans, according to a proposed class action in Minnesota federal court.
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November 15, 2023
Locke Lord Brings On DLA Piper Health Ace In Miami
Locke Lord LLP announced Wednesday that it has added a new partner to its health and managed care litigation practice group in Miami, who was previously with DLA Piper.
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November 15, 2023
European Health Care Investor Clinches €740M Fund
Netherlands-based health care investor Gilde Healthcare on Wednesday announced that it closed its sixth health care venture and growth fund at its hard cap with €740 million ($803.1 million) in tow, which will be used to invest in health care companies in North America and Europe.
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November 14, 2023
Senators Told Medicare Telehealth Option Too Vital To Lose
Telehealth services made available to Medicare beneficiaries during the pandemic are critical to patient well-being, particularly in rural areas, and must be made permanent, expert witnesses largely agreed Tuesday during a U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing.
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November 14, 2023
FDA Medical Device Expert Joins Cooley Life Sciences Group
Cooley LLP has hired a medical devices expert from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as special counsel to its growing global life sciences and health care regulatory practice.
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November 13, 2023
PostMeds Slapped With Another Suit Over Data Breach
A PostMeds Inc. customer has filed a proposed class action in California federal court against the online pharmacy for failing to protect sensitive patient information from a cyberattack and the slow response that followed, the latest suit following the disclosure of the breach last month.
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November 13, 2023
Polsinelli Bolsters Public Policy Practice With 2 Hires
Polsinelli PC is continuing an expansion of its public policy practice with the addition of two attorneys: one a former senior counsel for a U.S. senator and the other a former senior director at the world's largest retail trade association.
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November 09, 2023
Senators Told That AI Is Already Harming Patients
While the health care industry is focused on how new developments in artificial intelligence will reshape the field, some experts believe more attention should be paid to the fact that AI isn't just a hypothetical — it's here, and already influencing patient care.
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November 08, 2023
Advertising Group Urges Caution With Private Health Data
An industry trade group that develops self-regulatory standards for online advertising released guidance Wednesday on the use of private data in health-related digital ads.
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November 08, 2023
Amazon Launches Telehealth Platform After $4B Acquisition
Amazon has launched a new health care platform for its Prime members, offering around-the-clock access to telehealth visits for minor needs and some in-person and remote primary care services via One Medical, a digital health company it acquired for nearly $4 billion.
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November 07, 2023
Patients In Data Breach Suit Say Fraud Risk Equals Injury
Patients and employees of a network of hundreds of dental centers told a Michigan federal judge on Monday their proposed class action over a data breach can't be dismissed for a failure to allege injury because they are at imminent risk of fraud.
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November 07, 2023
Online Pharmacy Failed To Keep Patient Data Safe, Suit Says
A West Virginia man has lodged a proposed class action in California federal court against online pharmacy PostMeds Inc. for failing to protect sensitive patient information from a cyberattack and then dragging its feet before getting the word out to clients.
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November 06, 2023
New CMS Final Rule Clarifies Telehealth, Remote Care
The federal government's final Physician Fee Schedule for 2024, released last week, punts certain decisions around telehealth another year and clarifies remote care expectations under Medicare.
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November 03, 2023
'Devil's In The Details' Of Biden's AI Health Plans, Experts Say
BigLaw experts have praised President Joe Biden's sweeping plan to harness the powers of artificial intelligence to develop potent cancer treatments, improve equity in the medical field and otherwise serve patients and heal the ills of the U.S. health care industry.
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November 03, 2023
CMS To Cut Medicare Provider Payments, Drawing Industry Ire
The federal government has released its final Physician Fee Schedule, cutting Medicare payment rates for physicians in 2024 and drawing criticism from health care industry groups, which argued that the cuts would hinder care and create financial instability for doctors.
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November 03, 2023
GoodRx Threatened With Sanctions Over Settlement Notice
A California federal judge ordered GoodRx to explain why the company shouldn't be sanctioned after failing to notify the court about a related nationwide proposed class action in Florida that reached a preliminary settlement over claims the company improperly shared users' data to Meta Platforms Inc. and Google.
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November 02, 2023
Hospitals Challenge Federal Guidance On Website Tracking
The American Hospital Association sued the Biden administration Thursday over federal guidance restricting the use of online tracking technology, alleging the rule violates the First Amendment and interferes with their communication of vital health information.
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November 02, 2023
25 AGs Want Warning Labels On Oxygen-Reading Devices
Twenty-five attorneys general want the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to issue labels on blood-oxygen-level readers warning of their "life-threatening" inaccuracies for people of color due to bias in their readings.
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November 02, 2023
Sens. Launch Working Group On Health Care Cybersecurity
Amid an increase in cyberattacks targeting health records, a bipartisan group of senators announced Thursday the launch of a new working group to strengthen cybersecurity in the health care and public health sectors.
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October 31, 2023
Conn. AG Presses 23andMe Over User Data Breach
Connecticut's attorney general is pressing genetic tracking company 23andMe Inc. for information on a data breach involving user information, questioning whether the company complied with state laws governing data breaches and personal data.
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October 31, 2023
HHS Proposes Monetary Sanctions For Information Blocking
Health care providers would face monetary disincentives for engaging in information blocking under a proposed rule by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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October 30, 2023
Health Systems Say Meta Data-Sharing Suit Lacks Substance
A group of medical systems asked a California federal judge Friday to toss a proposed class action alleging they "disregarded the privacy rights" of millions of visitors to their websites by sharing user data with Meta without users' knowledge through third-party tracking technologies.
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October 27, 2023
Rush University Hospital Sued Over Worker Fingerprint Scans
A respiratory therapist has hit his former employer, a Chicago hospital, with a proposed class action in Illinois state court alleging a violation of the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act over its use of fingerprint scanning to access medicine and supply dispensing machines.
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October 27, 2023
Costco Gave Meta Customers' Medical Info, Class Action Says
Costco disclosed customers' personal health information to third parties, such as Meta, through the use of tracking tools on its website, a proposed class action has alleged in Washington federal court.
Expert Analysis
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Bracing For The Next Wave Of Health Care Enforcement
Health companies should take proactive steps against a coming wave of federal enforcement, in light of massive new health funding, agencies' desire to protect COVID-19 relief funds, increased use of data analytics and a likely rise in qui tam suits, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.
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Indoor Air Pollution Fix Will Require New Laws, New Tech
The COVID-19 pandemic, an aging population and changing workplace dynamics all foretell more exposure to indoor air pollutants, so a multidisciplinary policy approach combining technology, insurance, funding and regulation will be needed to improve indoor air quality and health, says Ann Al-Bahish at Haynes and Boone.
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How Justices' AMG Ruling Affects Privacy And Cybersecurity
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in AMG Capital Management v. Federal Trade Commission removes the regulator's ability to seek monetary damages that discouraged privacy and cybersecurity breaches, and as a result, companies should reassess their exposure in these areas, say attorneys at Orrick.
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COVID's Int'l Trade Impact Holds Health Co. Legal Implications
Pandemic-prompted changes to international trade are highlighting novel legal issues related to the health care industry's reliance on an international supply chain, the proliferation of counterfeit supplies, and risks associated with offshoring administrative support, say Brett Johnson and Claudia Stedman at Snell & Wilmer.
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Mapping The Predicate Chain For Medical Device Approval
Omar Robles at Emerging Health analyzes the potential magnitude of predicate chains created by the 510(k) pathway for medical device approval, in light of common criticism that the approval process can create chains of devices that reach the marketplace without recent clinical testing.
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Where Health Care Enforcement Is Headed Under Biden
Early actions by President Joe Biden's administration signal a robust health care enforcement environment in which federal agencies will aggressively scrutinize pandemic-related and Medicare Advantage fraud, nursing homes, and medical technology, and False Claims Act activity will likely increase, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
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Mitigating Anti-Kickback Risks Of Health Tech Stock Warrants
While stock warrants are a practical way for the health technology industry to finance growth, companies should utilize statutory safe harbors to mitigate federal Anti-Kickback Statute compliance risks, which could arise from an improperly structured arrangement that encourages referral of business to a vendor, say Meenakshi Datta and Jon Zucker at Sidley.
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ABA Remote Work Guide Raises Bar For Atty Tech Know-How
A recent American Bar Association opinion on lawyers' ethical duties of competence and confidentiality when working remotely should be viewed as part of a larger movement by which attorneys are being exhorted to develop competence in 21st century technology, say Jennifer Goldsmith at Ironshore and Barry Temkin at Mound Cotton.
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3 Cybersecurity Questions To Ask Before A Remote Mediation
Lawyers preparing to mediate or arbitrate a case through videoconference should take steps to ensure they and their alternative dispute resolution providers are employing reasonable security precautions to protect digital client data and conform to confidentiality obligations, say F. Keith Brown and Michael Koss at ADR Systems.
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Expect Aggressive Health Care Scrutiny From Mass. US Atty
As we await a new presidentially appointed U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, health business leaders and in-house counsel should reexamine their compliance structures, as the office will likely continue to prioritize enforcement efforts against both traditional areas of focus and pandemic-related fraud, say Jack Pirozzolo and Doreen Rachal at Sidley.
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4 Areas Of Cyberattack Vulnerability For Law Firms
Recent data breaches involving Goodwin and Jones Day show that cyberattacks are very real threats to the legal profession, especially in the era of remote work, so law firms should revisit common business practices that expose them to unnecessary risks, says Ara Aslanian at Inverselogic.
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Health Info Blocking Rule Creates Opportunities For Research
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' information blocking rule taking effect in April will provide researchers with a new tool for obtaining electronic health information, which could lead to a proliferation of new endeavors and insights, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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7 False Claims Act Enforcement Trends To Watch
False Claims Act enforcement statistics, along with anticipated enforcement priorities under the Biden administration, suggest that we will see a significant increase in FCA investigations and related litigation, targeting a widening array of industries and categories of defendants, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.