Alisha Patel, Class of 2022, Belmont Law A recent report by the Kaiser Health News reported that rural health hospitals are struggling to keep doors open or even pay back their Medicare Accelerated and Advance Payment loans they received to assist navigating the pandemic. However, repayment of these loans is officially due this month and …
United States Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Landmark Pharmacy Benefit Manager Regulation Case
Anthony Huber, Class of 2021, Belmont Law On October 6, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States listened to oral arguments from opposing parties in the Rutledge v. Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (“Rutledge”) case. The issue in the Rutledge case is whether the 8th Circuit erred in holding that Arkansas’ statute regulating pharmacy benefit …
Amy Coney Barret and the Future of the ACA
Jacob Freeland, Class of 2021, Belmont Law As a result of President Donald Trump’s latest pick for the United States Supreme Court: Amy Coney Barrett, there has been a great deal of discussion regarding the implication that this appointment could mean for the future of the Affordable Care Act. The appointment of Barrett is surely …
President Trump Signs Mental Health Executive Order
David Brust, Class of 2022, Belmont Law On October 5, 2020, President Trump signed an executive order to address “ongoing mental- and behavioral-health concerns” magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the order, President Trump stated his Administration’s goals are to prevent suicide, end the opioid crisis, and improve mental and behavioral health. The order was …
American Hospital Association Criticizes Provision in CMS’ Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems Final Rule
Anthony Huber, Class of 2021, Belmont Law On September 2, 2020 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) filed an unpublished version of the upcoming Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (“IPPS”) Final Rule for 2021. According to CMS, the finalized policies in the IPPS Final Rule support its key priorities such as, strengthening Medicare and …
Tennessee COVID-19 Recovery Act
Jacob Freeland, Class of 2021, Belmont Law Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law the Tennessee COVID-19 Recovery Act on August 17, 2020. By doing this, Tennessee joins a growing list of states that have enacted state laws that provide expansive protections to various individuals and organizations from actions arising from loss, damages, injuries, …
Covid-19 Response – Temporary Altering of Nurse Practitioner Scope of Practice Requirements
David Brust, Class of 2022, Belmont Law In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, twenty-three states made temporary changes to their scope of practice requirements for nurse practitioners (twenty-two of the states are classified as reduced or restrictive practice states). One of the most common changes states made was suspending or modifying physician supervision or collaboration …
U.S. District Court Judge Blocks Rule Requiring Drug Companies to List Prices in T.V. Ads
Amy Zink, Class of 2021, Belmont Law On May 10, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) finalized a rule called the “WAC Disclosure Rule” that would require the disclosure of drug prices in direct-to-consumer television advertisements of drugs covered by Medicaid and Medicare. This rule was first pushed by President Trump’s Administration …
Support for Telemedicine During Pandemic
Jessica Scott, Class of 2021, Belmont Law The current coronavirus pandemic has overwhelmed numerous countries’ healthcare systems, including China and Italy who are unable to help all the patients that walk through the hospital doors in critical condition as a result of the coronavirus. As physical hospital locations in China are full and overflowing with …
Tennessee Supreme Court Holds that Qualified Protective Order Provision Violates the Tennessee Constitution
Anthony Huber, Belmont Law, Class of 2021 Last week, on February 28, in the case Willeford v. Klepper, the Tennessee Supreme Court (“Court”) found that a statutory provision in Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-26-121(f) violated the separation of powers clause in the Tennessee Constitution. The provision struck down by the Court allowed defense counsel to conduct …