The new Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative of the US Department of Justice’s use of the punitive False Claims Act (FCA) and its whistleblower provisions has some important legal and risk management considerations for the health industry. Because enforcement will initially occur largely through civil investigations applying the FCA in the broadest possible way, healthcare organizations should undertake a priority assessment of their cybersecurity status to ensure that their practices can withstand hacks, whistleblowers, and government scrutiny.
Health Law Scan
Legal Insights and Perspectives for the Healthcare Industry
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently voted to withdraw its approval of the Vertical Merger Guidelines (the 2020 VMGs), which, as we covered in the past, the FTC and Department of Justice (DOJ) issued over a year ago on June 30, 2020. The vote on September 15, 2021 to rescind the policy statement broke along party lines, with the three Democratic commissioners—Chair Lina Kahn and Commissioners Rohit Chopra and Rebecca Slaughter—outweighing their two Republican colleagues—Commissioners Noah Joshua Phillips and Christine S. Wilson.