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Huber, Class of 2021, Belmont Law On September 2, 2020 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) filed an unpublished version of the upcoming Inpatient Prospective Payment Systems (“IPPS”) Final Rule for 2021.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 …
NarxCare, Pharmacies Way of Tracking Opioid Usage of Patients. What You Need to Know
Jessica Scott, Belmont Law, Class of 2021 Pharmacies try to do their part during the opioid crisis to track data of patients’ usage and find those who are at-risk. Technology is a huge part of helping pharmacists track down those who are at risk for substance misuse or abuse. Appriss Health created NarxCare, an analytic …
States Place Bans on Vaping Products: Let the Litigation Begin
Anthony Huber, Belmont Law, Class of 2021 On September 24, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker ordered a four-month ban on the sale of all vaping products in the state. The ban was approved by the Public Health Council and took immediate effect. “The purpose of this public health emergency is to temporarily pause all sales of …
Drug Resistant Infections in Skilled Nursing Facilities and Long-Term Care Hospitals
Ryland Close, Belmont Law, Class of 2020 Skilled nursing facilities and long-term care hospitals are struggling to control the spread of Candida auris, a drug resistant fungus that causes serious infections, particularly in vulnerable patients with pre-existing illnesses.[1] Candida auris poses an especially serious threat as it is difficult to identify, spreads easily and quickly, …