Health Law Scan

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 7, 2026, issued a proposed rule (CMS-1850-P) for calendar year (CY) 2027 that would overhaul payment policies for hospital outpatient departments and ambulatory surgical centers under the Medicare program. The deadline to submit comments is August 31, 2026.

The Biden administration recently announced its much-anticipated proposed rule for implementing a minimum staffing “floor” for nursing homes in the United States and further launched a nursing home accountability initiative. These efforts are seismic for the long-term care nursing home community and will bring new challenges and scrutiny to a health industry sector battered with healthcare personnel shortages, pandemic recovery obstacles, changing reimbursement models, and regulatory scrutiny.

Last month, we had an engaging Fast Break session covering compliance topics regarding healthcare professionals’ relationships with pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. We were joined by Terrence Burek, senior counsel, neurology & immunology at EMD Serono, and Morgan Lewis partner Scott Memmott, who highlighted specific compliance risk areas for healthcare professionals (HCPs), as well as permissible interactions with pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers and contracting/risk mitigation best practices.