Team of healthcare workers

Throughout the COVID pandemic, healthcare employers have navigated the challenge of balancing safety concerns with employee requests for religious exemption from the vaccine.  Since lifting the stay of the CMS rule requiring certain healthcare workers to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, the US Supreme Court (Court) has refused to enjoin state and city vaccine mandates for workers who seek religious exemptions from such mandates. On March 7, 2022, the full Court rejected, without comment, an emergency application for an injunction that was previously denied by Justice Sotomayor to prevent enforcement of the New York City Department of Education’s COVID-19 mandate against suspended workers who refused vaccination based on religion.  In the wake of continued challenges to vaccine mandates based on religion, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), released guidance on March  1, 2022 that addresses questions related to religious objections to vaccinations in the workplace. Healthcare employers should ensure that assessment of requests for religious exemptions for vaccine mandates comports with EEOC guidance.

Hospice Insights

Welcome to an inspiring conversation on how story can help us reconnect with mission, staff and communities. As hospices face unprecedented staffing shortages and a burnt-out workforce, a key to thriving may be to re-engage with our human essence, which can be found through story. Today’s guest, Dr. Bertice Berry, PhD, explains humans are hardwired for story—it is how we connect, reflect and grow. So how do we use storytelling as a leadership tool? The Institute for Story’s upcoming conference on Advancing the Science of Story and Storytelling intends to help leaders do just that.

Labor Law Insider

In this podcast episode, join our Labor Law Insiders as they discuss the unique vulnerabilities faced by the healthcare industry at this juncture of history, including the impact on bargaining and of expanded union organizing activities. Our Insiders also explore some actions that employers can take to reduce the possible conflicts between employees and management…

Covid Vaccine Alert

For many healthcare employers, phase one and phase two COVID-19 vaccine deadlines are either here or quickly approaching. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), in an exercise of enforcement discretion, has begun monitoring covered CMS provider and supplier types for implementation of COVID-19 staff vaccination requirements in accordance with the COVID-19 Healthcare Staff Vaccination…

No surprises legal alert

On February 23, 2022, Judge Jeremy Kernodle of the Eastern District of Texas ruled that certain parts of the Interim Final Rule Part II (the Rule) implementing the No Surprises Act are invalid. Specifically, the provisions of the Rule governing the methodology for how arbitrators determine the amount of payments insurers and self-funded health plans…

Hospice Insights

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently announced that its 2022 work plan for hospices will include a nationwide review of hospice beneficiary eligibility. In this episode, Husch Blackwell’s Meg Pekarske and Bryan Nowicki discuss what led to this latest effort by the OIG, what hospices can expect and what they should do. Listen today:…

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), which accredits graduate medical residency and fellowship programs, will require programs to offer six weeks of paid leave for residents/fellows, beginning on the first day of their ACGME-accredited programs. ACGME’s amended Institutional Requirements (effective July 1, 2022) require Sponsoring Institutions (those that administer ACGME-accredited residency/fellowship programs) to have policies for resident/fellow leaves that:

Hospice Insights

In this episode of the COVID-19 Hospice How-To Series, we discuss the most pressing vaccination issues and how to navigate them. Our team explores strategies for handling vendors, the role unvaccinated staff can have in direct patient care, obligations to require boosters and what enforcement may look like. This episode contains many helpful insights,…

SCOTUS CMS Vaccine Arguments

On Friday, January 07, 2022, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on a rule promulgated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The Rule is being challenged by numerous states and CMS is currently enjoined from enforcing the Rule in half the country. The government petitioned the Supreme Court to stay the injunctions in…

Hospice Insights

Hospices’ unique regulatory and business environment impacts how they contract with and relate to other private entities. In this episode, we discuss the many kinds of hospice-related contracts and contract-dispute matters they have worked on, and how their clients benefitted from their in-depth knowledge of hospices. Tune at: https://bit.ly/3JRIObe