On July 1, 2021, the Office of Personnel Management (“OPM”), the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), the Department of Treasury (“Treasury”), the Employee Benefits Security Administration (“EBSA”), the Department of Labor (“DOL”), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), and the Department of Health and Human Services (“CMS”) (collectively the “Departments”) jointly issued the Interim Rule – Requirements Related to Surprise Billing; Part 1 (hereinafter, the “Interim Rule” or the “Rule”). This Interim Rule is the first implementing regulation of the federal No Surprises Act (alternatively the “Act”) which was enacted on December 27, 2020 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act. Both this Interim Rule, and the Act, are effective applicable for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2022.

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Join Meg Pekarske and our newest member of our Hospice & Palliative care team, Noreen Vergara, where they discuss different ways hospices can come together to succeed in the value-based care landscape. They explore a continuum of options from messenger-model networks to networks that are clinically and financially integrated all the way to common ownership…

Hospice Insights

After nearly half a year of silence, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services finally provided direction on when providers need to submit Provider Relief Fund (“PRF”) compliance reports. In this episode, Husch Blackwell’s Meg Pekarske and Andrew Brenton discuss this and other PRF developments, including new deadlines by which providers must use their…

Provider Relief Fund Update

On June 11, 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued new guidance on Provider Relief Fund (PRF) reporting and the deadline for providers to use their funds. Provider recipients can now begin submitting information in the PRF Reporting Portal on July 1, 2021. Summary of use and reporting timeline can be found…

Hospice Insights

In today’s episode of our Hospice Privacy Series, Husch Blackwell’s Meg Pekarske is joined by colleagues Wakaba Tessier and Erin Burns, who share insights on the ins and outs of HIPAA breaches. They break down what a HIPAA breach really is, the types of breaches most often experienced by hospices and what to do when you think you have discovered a breach.

OSHA Piece

On June 9, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its long anticipated interim final rule and request for comments for the Occupational Exposure to COVID-19; Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). OSHA released the ETS one day after the approval of the standard was received from the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office…

Colorado Flag

Last week, in the case of Rocky Mountain Association of Recruiters v. Moss, Case No. 1:20-cv-03819 (U.S.D.C. Colo.), U.S. District Judge William J. Martinez denied a plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction to block portions of Colorado’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act (EPEWA). The EPEWA, which went into effect beginning this year, aims…

Congratulations

jCyte, Inc., a biotech company dedicated to improving the lives of patients with retinal degenerative diseases, today announced the further expansion of the company’s executive management team with the appointment of John Sholar as general counsel. The full piece can be found here: https://bit.ly/3uj3qzX

A heartfelt congratulations to John from the Husch Blackwell Healthcare,…

Not So Common Employment Questions

1.  I have a unionized workforce. Do I need to bargain before mandating that my employees are Covid vaccinated before reporting to work?

With the CDC largely ending mask requirements for those who are Covid vaccinated, many employers will look anew at whether they will require vaccinations for their employees to participate in the workplace. While this whole topic raises a myriad of questions related to vaccine certificates, maintenance of medical records, and exceptions that might apply to employees because of religious or health accommodations, an entirely separate question comes up as to whether employers may mandate their union workforce to be vaccinated in order to work.