Health Law Scan
Much to the relief of the healthcare provider community, US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spokesperson Michael Caputo tweeted on Monday that HHS intended to extend the public health emergency that was declared earlier this year.
Legal Insights and Perspectives for the Healthcare Industry
As coronavirus (COVID-19) cases begin to surge in Texas, Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order No. GA-27 on June 25 to preserve hospital bed availability for COVID-19 patients. The executive order directs acute care hospitals in Bexar, Dallas, Harris, or Travis counties to postpone certain procedures and surgeries. In a recent LawFlash, we highlight the details of the order, and insights surrounding elective procedures in Texas and other areas in the United States. Banee Pachuca, Sydney Reed, and Jake Harper recently hosted a Fast Break discussing elective procedures in various states, including Texas.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered a number of state and local actions with respect to tax filings, assessments, exemptions, donations, and payment deadlines, including exempting personal protective equipment and alcohol for sanitizing purposes from tax liability.
To keep you abreast of these changes, our tax lawyers have produced a chart, updated regularly, detailing state and local responses to COVID-19.
In this LawFlash, our Tax and Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation teams describe proposed regulations recently released by the Internal Revenue Service implementing Internal Revenue Code Section 4960. Section 4960 imposes a 21% excise tax on certain executive compensation paid to employees of tax-exempt organizations, including nonprofit hospital systems. The proposed regulations address important questions concerning the applicability of Section 4960. Those interested in submitting comments on the proposed regulations have until August 10, 2020 to do so.
In this LawFlash our Labor, Employment, and Benefits team details the long-anticipated ruling by the US Supreme Court in Bostock v. Clayton County that held Title VII’s ban on discrimination extends to gay, lesbian, and transgender individuals. The decision comes on the heels of a recent US Department of Health and Human Services announcement rolling back certain healthcare protections extended to LGBT individuals as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Noting that the Supreme Court’s ruling will have a sweeping impact on federal antidiscrimination law, the LawFlash discusses key recommendations for employers and policy implications for the ACA.
Congressional stimulus packages appropriated $175 billion in relief funds under the CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Acts for the benefit of hospitals and other healthcare providers in response to losses incurred due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
In a recent LawFlash, our colleagues in the white collar practice discussed the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) Criminal Division’s update to its Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs guidance, which is used by its prosecutors to assess the adequacy and effectiveness of corporate compliance programs in corporate criminal resolutions. The updated guidance retains nearly all of the language and questions contained in the previous guidance released in April 2019, but the new update provides clarifications and refinements in key areas, including with regard to access to compliance-related data. Healthcare companies may be interested to review the recent updates that provide insights and useful clarification that can aid legal and compliance departments.
As we continue to look forward to a new post-pandemic reality, our NOW. NORMAL. NEXT. resource page has a number of recent publications that our friends of Health Law Scan may be interested in:
Please join us for a webinar on Wednesday, June 3 at 3:00 pm ET to discuss the issues associated with the pursuit of funds under business interruption insurance coverage and FEMA public assistance and how they may intersect with the acceptance of terms and conditions associated with the CARES Act provider relief funds.
Partners Jay Konkel, Jeff Raskin, and Susan Feigin Harris will discuss these issues and some common scenarios presented by client questions.
Authors’ Note: In what may be emblematic of the legal landscape in the time of coronavirus (COVID-19), after we finalized the blog post below for publication regarding the US Department of Health and Human Services updates to the HHS FAQs relating to the CARES Act Relief Fund payments made by HHS on May 19, the agency later added or updated its FAQ on the night of May 20, with some notable changes. These updates have been included (and emphasized in italics) in this republication.
With just days left until provider attestations are due related to acceptance of CARES Act Provider Relief Funds, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has recently been updating its FAQs, providing some additional clarity, and potentially confusion, surrounding the acceptance of Relief Funds from its initial tranche $30 billion of General Distribution payments. Attestations for the first tranche of payments on April 10 are due May 25, and HHS continues to furnish guidance regarding the details of the General Distribution Relief Fund.
