All Perspectives

The Federal Trade Commission has lost an important mechanism for privacy and data security enforcement in data flowing across the Atlantic with the invalidation of the Safe Harbor framework, according to Commissioner Julie Brill.

Free trade agreements have a generic template that negotiators follow. After the various “feel good” provisions outlining the lofty objectives of said agreement, the text quickly turns to the nuts and bolts of the negotiations…

US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General released an OIG Alert reminding the public that electronic health records furnished to referral sources may not meet the federal anti-kickback statute’s EHR safe harbor if EHR system has limited or restricted interoperability.

Health care providers and their contractors have been put on notice by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) that the next round of HIPAA compliance audits will begin in early 2016.  The previous round of HIPAA audits was completed in 2014.

Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert is expected to enter a guilty plea to charges of lying to prosecutors and violating banking laws to cover payoffs allegedly made to make past misconduct disappear, reported the Washington Post on October 15.

Sunday, October 18, 2015 marked the official “Adoption Day” of the July 14, 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

California passed Assembly Bill 60 (AB60) which allows the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue a driver’s license to any person, which could include an undocumented person, who cannot establish their legal presence in the US but otherwise meets licensing requirements to drive a motor vehicle.

Several Arent Fox attorneys were honored on October 14 with the Capital Area Immigrant Rights Coalition Detained Children’s Champion Award for outstanding pro bono service to juvenile detainees.

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued a ruling which could have significant positive implications for those drug manufacturers unhappy with a particular Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration’s interpretive rule.

Arent Fox’s Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring practice was retained as counsel to the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors in the Chapter 11 case of Advance Watch Company, Ltd.

Arent Fox’s Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring practice was retained as counsel to the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors in the Chapter 11 case of Forest Park Medical Center at Frisco, LLC.

Arent Fox LLP obtained summary judgment for CallFire, Inc. when a federal district court judge ruled the cloud telephone service provider could not be liable in a class action lawsuit that claimed the company violated the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

AB 465, the California bill that sought to eliminate arbitration agreements as a condition of employment and in other settings, was vetoed by Governor Jerry Brown. AB 465 will go back to the House for further consideration and will require a two-thirds vote by both houses to overturn the veto.

The 7th Circuit just denied ERISA rights to medical providers, but this doesn’t have to be the result.

The decision caused international panic and businesses will be asked questions about their data protection practices. It is important to check where Safe Harbor is built into current agreements and evaluate both business-to-consumer and business-to-business relationships.

Preventing falls is a perpetual task for health care facilities and those who regulate or accredit them. The Joint Commission issued a Sentinel Event Alert addressing fall-prevention and fall-related injuries, providing recommendations to supplement its existing fall-prevention standards.

On October 8, Bloomberg Politics broke down “How the White House Slices 18,000 Tax Cuts From Trade Deal” following the controversial 12-nation deal reached earlier that week.

In recognition of his standout career as a leading entertainment attorney, Arent Fox LLP partner Anthony V. Lupo was honored with the prestigious Game Changer Award on September 18 at the New Global Paradigm for Entertainment, Arts and Sports Symposium in Washington, DC.

Over the weekend, negotiators from the US, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and eight Pacific Rim countries agreed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the largest regional trade accord in history, accounting for more than 40 percent of the global economy.  

These action items will not only put you in a better position when a breach arises, but you will have the right answers when a regulator calls.

On September 21, 2015, the US DOJ and whistleblowers’ counsel announced that Florida-headquartered Adventist Health System (Adventist) had agreed to pay $118.7 million to resolve allegations that it violated the FCA by submitting claims in violation of the Stark law and by miscoding claims.

The Ninth Circuit’s decision is a big win for the NCAA and affirms its amateurism model and remains protected from having to treat college athletes like employees.

The EU’s top court could rule the Safe Harbor framework is ineffective to allow data to flow across the Atlantic and as companies await the Oct. 6 decision, they should consider other options for transfer of data from the EU to the US.

Joyce Branda, the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Commercial Litigation Branch of the DOJ, gave the keynote address on September 28, 2015, at the American Health Lawyers Association Fraud and Compliance Forum in Baltimore, providing conference attendees with an update from DOJ.