The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently updated its guidance regarding COVID-19 and its impact on certain equal employment opportunity laws. The EEOC guidance consists of numerous technical assistance questions and answers pertaining to COVID-19. The update included a question asking whether an employer may administer a COVID-19 test…
On April 26, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that its suspending its Advance Payment Program to Part B Suppliers, effective immediately. Additionally, CMS announced that it is reevaluating the amounts to be paid out under the Accelerated Payment Program. To date, CMS has paid out…
On April 21, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a Notification of Enforcement Discretion (the “Notification”) regarding the provision of telehealth services during the COVID-19 public health emergency in the Federal Register. The Notification codifies guidance previously issued by the HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR)…
HHS will soon distribute a second tranche of $20 billion in non-targeted Provider Relief Funds as part of the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund (“PHSSEF”) appropriation. Under the CARES Act, HHS received a $100 billion appropriation to be spent to assist providers that lost revenues or incurred additional…
As the number of COVID-19 cases starts to decline, a number of facilities are preparing to resume elective surgical care. The recently issued guidelines outlined below were created by the American College of Surgeons (ACOS) to help facilities safely plan for resumption of elective surgery. There are 10 distinct issues…
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that it will distribute $100 billion to healthcare providers, including hospitals, battling the COVID-19 pandemic. HHS will be allocating portions of this $100 billion to different areas of the healthcare arena. Below provides an overview of these allocations. GENERAL ALLOCATIONS Half…
On April 15, 2020, the Department of Justice announced the following settlement agreements under the False Claims Act (FCA): The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced that a laboratory, pain clinic and two former executives agreed to pay $41 million dollars to resolve allegations under the…
On April 19, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), partnered with the Trump Administration, announced new regulatory requirements will be issued for nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. CMS also issued a memorandum discussing what the new regulations will include. The regulations are being implemented to address…
Today, April 22, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that $10 billion will be distributed to as grants hospitals in areas that have been particularly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes hospitals serving areas that have high percentages of confirmed COVID-19 cases (e.g., New York).…
The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has begun issuing $30 billion in awards from the Public Health and Social Service Emergency Fund (PHSSEF) to healthcare providers nationwide to help relieve the financial burden imposed upon the healthcare industry by the COVID-19 pandemic. Each provider that receives an award…