By Keith C. Dennen A woman is seriously injured in a car accident. It is not her fault. She is taken to the emergency room where she is treated. When she is released, the hospital bills total $100,000. The woman has health insurance. The hospital submits its claim and the health insurance company pays $25,000.00 …
Hearing Held on Pennsylvania’s Novel “Any Willing Insurer” Legislation
By James M. Burns On December 18, 2013, the Pennsylvania House Health Committee held a hearing on Pennsylvania House Bills 1621 and 1622, two bills that would require that any health provider in the state that operates as part of an integrated delivery system (i.e., a health system that also has its own health plan, …
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The Supreme Court Holds Human Genes are Unpatentable
By Joan Ellis, Ph.D. In a unanimous decision written by Justice Thomas, the Supreme Court held that naturally-occurring DNA sequences are unpatentable. The Court has long held that certain subject matter is not patent eligible under 35 USC § 101. Patent exempt subject matter includes laws of nature, natural phenomenon, and abstract ideas. In this …
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OIG Finds Tennessee’s Amended False Claims Act Too Narrow, Requiring Tennessee to Go Back to the Drawing Board Again
By Rodney D. Butler Within the last few weeks, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a letter to the State of Tennessee regarding its Medicaid Fraud False Claims Acts. Unfortunately for the State of Tennessee, the OIG provided notice that their statutory framework failed to meet the requirements of section 1909 of the Social …