On March 7, 2013, the New Jersey Assembly Appropriations Committee approved legislation related to off-label drug coverage. Assembly bill A1830 would require health benefits plans offered to individuals and small employers, the State Health Benefits Program (SHBP) and the School Employees' Health Benefits Program (SEHBP), to provide coverage for certain off-label uses for drugs that are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The health plans would be required to provide coverage for off-label use of a drug if the drug is recognized as being medically appropriate for the specific treatment for which is has been prescribed in one of two established reference compendia (the American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information or the U.S. Pharmacopeia Drug Information), or if the drug is recommended by a clinical study or review article in a major peer-reviewed professional journal. According to bill sponsor Herb Conaway M.D., "the purpose of [the] bill is to extend the medical benefits that may derive from the use of off-label drugs to individuals who may not be able to access these medications. In particular those individuals who are suffering from a terminal or chronically debilitating illness, because their insurance carriers won't cover these drugs." The full text and status of the bill are available here.… Continue Reading
This post was also written by Ruth N. Holzman and Angelo Ciavarella. Yesterday the House approved by a vote of 270-146 legislation to repeal the ACA’s controversial 2.3% excise tax on the sale price of certain medical devices, which is scheduled to apply to sales after December 31, 2012. The repeal provision is included in H.R. 436, the … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Ruth N. Holzman and Angelo Ciavarella. A vote on legislation to repeal the ACA’s medical device excise tax could come in June, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor announced today. The ACA imposes a 2.3% excise tax on the sale price of medical devices sold by the manufacturer, producer, or importer of the … Continue Reading
The New Hampshire State Senate held a hearing on April 19, 2012 regarding HB 1725, a new measure that would prohibit all health care practitioners from prescribing or referring any U.S. Food and Drug Administration class II or class III implantable medical device if the practitioner stands to "profit indirectly or directly from the sale of [the] medical device by any supplier in which the health care practitioner has a direct or indirect ownership interest."… Continue Reading
On March 29, 2012, the New Hampshire House of Representatives recommended for passage HB 1725. If passed, HB 1725 would prohibit all health care practitioners from prescribing or referring any U.S. Food and Drug Administration class II or class III implantable medical device if the practitioner stands to profit, directly or indirectly, from the sale of the device, or from performing any procedure involving the device.… Continue Reading
On November 14, 2011, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing called "Medical Devices: Protecting Patients and Promoting Innovation." The hearing focused on the continued viability of a medical device clearance process that clears for market medical devices that are "substantially equivalent" devices to previously cleared devices (also known as the "510(k) process," in reference to the statutory provision governing this process). Class III medical devices not cleared through this process must undergo the more rigorous and time-consuming Premarket Approval process. Among the issues considered were whether the 510(k) process sufficiently evaluated the safety of devices when clinical data is not necessarily always considered or part of the submission; whether high-risk medical devices should always be considered for the 510(k) process; the user fees for medical device applications; strengthening post-approval monitoring requirements; and the resources and needs for the FDA and the Center of Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) in reviewing, clearing and approving medical devices.… Continue Reading
With a hat tip to the California Civil Justice Blog, earlier this week Texas enacted a "loser pays" system that proponents say will help rid the system of meritless cases. House Bill 274 takes effect September 1, 2011 and directs the Texas Supreme Court to enact rules providing for the early dismissal of "causes of action that have no basis in law or fact on motion and without evidence." For cases that fall within this "no basis in law or fact" category, the trial court may award the prevailing party costs and "reasonable and necessary attorney's fees . . . that the court determines are equitable and just" whenever it grants or denies a motion to dismiss, in whole or in part.
Given the rulemaking yet to occur and the discretion vested in the trial courts in whether to award fees, the exact contours of this law will take some development, and it remains to be seen whether Texas civil litigants will be ordered to pay attorneys fees rarely or with some frequency. Still, an interesting experiment in civil justice reform that will bear watching.… Continue Reading
On Friday, May 27, 2011, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") issued Notice 2011-46 (the "Third Notice"), which extended to June 10, 2011 the deadline to submit error reports in accordance with the dispute resolution process established with respect to the preliminary fee calculation of the 2011 fee imposed on certain manufacturers and importers of branded prescription drugs.… Continue Reading
The National Law Journal's article "Torts once again on the front burner in the House" discusses the March 24, 2011 U.S. House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on tort reform. The hearing, entitled, "Can We Sue Our Way to Prosperity?: Litigation's Effect on America's Global Competitiveness," once again opens the debate regarding the US tort system. Topics included a bill that would cap non-economic damages in cases of medical malpractice, and a hearing on the yet-to-be-introduced Lawsuit Abuse Reduction Act, a proposal to implement mandatory sanctions of attorneys who violate civil procedure's Rule 11 against filing frivolous claims.… Continue Reading
In February we noted that the perennial "Sunshine in Litigation" bill had been introduced again. The Senate version in S. 623 and the House version is H.R. 592 but there is no real difference. It now is scheduled for consideration in Senate Judiciary on May 5 at 10:00 a.m. A link to the webcast should be available then from the relevant Senate Judiciary Committee hearing and meeting page.… Continue Reading
Law360 is reporting that Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) is seeking to revive the 2009 "Sunshine in Litigation Act," a bill we covered previously. H.R. 592 would turn around the Supreme Court's Seattle Times Co. v. Rhinehart, 467 U.S. 20, 33 (1984), which concluded that discovery materials are not public components of a civil trial. As a result, litigation protective orders are permissible to protect the confidential and proprietary information of parties to civil litigation, at least until information produced in discovery is filed with the court or introduced into evidence for determination of a merits issue (such as on a motion for summary judgment or at trial.… Continue Reading
On January 14, 2011, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") issued Notice 2011-9 (the "Notice"), which extended the filing date for reporting on Form 8947 a covered entity's 2009 sales of branded prescription drugs under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively, the "Affordable Care Act" or the "ACA"). The filing date for Form 8947 with respect to 2009 sales of branded prescription drugs was extended from January 20, 2011 to February 11, 2011. In addition, in response to numerous comments received by the IRS, the Notice made certain changes to Notice 2010-71, 2010-50 IRB (the "Initial Notice"), primarily with respect to the information requested from covered entities.… Continue Reading
On November 29, 2010, the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS") issued Notice 2010-71, 2010-50 IRB (the "Notice"), which provides guidance on the calculation of the annual fee imposed on certain manufacturers and importers of branded prescription drugs for calendar years beginning after December 31, 2010, pursuant to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively, the Affordable Care Act or the "ACA"). Reed Smith Tax and LSHI attorneys have prepared an analysis of the guidance which provides background on the annual fee and a summary of the information contained in the Notice. While the Notice provides a solid starting point for IRS guidance, there are nevertheless areas of ambiguity that companies will need to evaluate.… Continue Reading
On September 30, the House Energy and Commerce Committee is holding a hearing on draft drug safety legislation (per http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_jcalpro&Itemid=54&extmode=view&extid=230&date=2010-09-30, witness list not yet available). The legislation, which was drafted by Reps. John Dingell, Henry Waxman, Frank Pallone, and Bart Stupak, requires parity between foreign and domestic drug facility inspections, increases the number of pre-approval drug inspections, prohibits the entry of drugs into the United States lacking documentation of safety, requires manufacturers to ensure the safety of their supply chain, and grants FDA authority to mandate recalls of unsafe drugs. For background information on the draft legislation (including the text), see http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2123:waxman-dingell-pallone-a-stupak-open-discussion-on-potentially-historic-changes-in-drug-safety-laws&catid=122:media-advisories&Itemid=55&layout=default&date=2010-10-01.… Continue Reading
On July 17, 2010, the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) published its final regulations for assisted living residences (ALRs) operating within the Commonwealth. 40 Pa.B. 4073. The final-form regulations were drafted to fulfill the statutory requirements of Act 56, which was enacted by the Pennsylvania General Assembly on July 25, 2007 and amended the statute regulating and licensing personal care homes by creating, defining and providing for the licensing and regulation of ALRs.… Continue Reading
In April 2010, Reed Smith provided an extensive analysis of the recently-enacted health reform legislation, H.R. 3590, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), as amended by H.R. 4872, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Reconciliation Act). In this analysis, we concentrate on those provisions in the new law that will … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Robert J. Hill and Jennifer A. Goldstein. In April 2010, Reed Smith provided an extensive analysis of the recently-enacted health reform legislation, H.R. 3590, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), as amended by H.R. 4872, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Reconciliation Act). In this analysis, … Continue Reading
In April 2010, Reed Smith provided an extensive analysis of the recently-enacted health reform legislation, H.R. 3590, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), as amended by H.R. 4872, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Reconciliation Act). Together, these sweeping measures expand access to health insurance (including subsidies, mandates, and market reforms); reduce health care spending (particularly in the Medicare program); expand federal fraud and abuse authorities and transparency requirements; impose new taxes and fees on health industry sectors; and institute a variety of other health policy reforms.… Continue Reading
We want to alert our manufacturer clients to the potential importance of a specific provision included in our analysis of the recent health care reform legislation. As we note at page 108 of our memorandum:
Medicaid Exclusion from Participation Relating to Certain Ownership, Control, and Management Affiliations (Sec. 6502)
[T]his provision requires Medicaid agencies to exclude individuals or entities from participating in Medicaid for a specified period of time if the entity or individual owns, controls, or manages an entity that: (1) has failed to repay overpayments during the period as determined by the Secretary; (2) is suspended, excluded, or terminated from participation in any Medicaid program; or (3) is affiliated with an individual or entity that has been suspended, excluded, or terminated from Medicaid participation.… Continue Reading
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), a sweeping measure designed to expand access to health insurance, reduce health care spending (particularly in the Medicare program); expand federal fraud and abuse authorities and transparency requirements; impose new taxes and fees on health industry sectors; and institute a variety of other health policy reforms. The President also signed a second bill into law on March 30, 2010, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (Reconciliation Act), which includes a series of "fixes" to the PPACA, including substantive changes to the PPACA's provisions regarding Medicare prescription drug coverage, Medicare Advantage and fee-for-service payments, Stark law self-referral policy, and Medicaid matching payments, among many others. Within the thousands of pages of the new laws are numerous provisions that will have a direct and material impact on nearly every component of the health care delivery and financing systems in the United States, including health insurers, health care providers, and manufacturers of pharmaceuticals and medical devices, as well as employers, taxpayers, and patients. Moreover, the impact of some of these provisions will be felt immediately, as certain provisions are effective upon enactment, and some have January 1, 2010 effective dates. Reed Smith has prepared a major Alert concentrating on those PPACA provisions we believe are of most interest to health care providers and medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers.… Continue Reading
This post was also written by Alison B. Riddell. Although California legislators devoted a significant amount of time and resources to addressing the state’s budget shortfall and the economic recession, the 2009 legislature debated and passed a surprising number of bills related to health care, many of which will become effective January 1, 2010. New … Continue Reading
On Tuesday, August 4, 2009, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions met for a hearing called "Protecting Patients from Defective Medical Devices" regarding Senate Bill 540, a companion bill to the House bill, H.R. 1346, the "Medical Device Safety Act of 2009." The House Subcommittee on Health, of the Committee on Energy and Commerce also met earlier this year on this issue, with some of the same speakers.… Continue Reading
On August 4, 2009 at 2:30 p.m., it will be the Senate’s HELP Committee’s turn to hold a hearing entitled “Protecting Patients from Defective Medical Devices”. No witness list is yet posted. For our coverage on past hearings on this issue, click here.… Continue Reading
California's tireless Civil Justice Association of California sponsored an electronic discovery bill that was signed into law on June 29, 2009 by Governor Schwarzenegger. The Electronic Discovery Act ("the Act") establishes procedures for litigants when obtaining discovery of electronically stored information in California. The Act amends the California Code of Civil Procedure, effective immediately, by adding provisions specifically related to electronic discovery.
Modeled after similar electronic discovery rules in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Act strives to strike a balance between making ESI available to a requesting party without over-burdening a responding party who utilizes mass quantities of ESI in its normal course of business.… Continue Reading
