http://faegrebdc.com/updates Updates From FaegreBD Consulting en-us Copyright 2000-16 FaegreBD Consulting. All Rights Reserved. http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 11/27/2016 2:47:38 PM Now that the dust has settled from the November 2016 election, Faegre Baker Daniels’ Indiana government team is providing you with a recap of the state’s results. The unexpected landslide of the Trump-Pence ticket had coattails that benefitted... http://faegrebdc.com/indiana-2016-general-election-recap 18 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 On November 14, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the 2017 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) final rule in the Federal Register. The rule finalizes changes to the Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive... http://faegrebdc.com/meaningful-use-changes-in-2017-opps-final-rule 15 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 Donald Trump’s election as president of the United States of America was as unexpected in the polls as the United Kingdom’s vote to embrace Brexit. Now Democrats and Republicans alike are trying to assess how Mr. Trump, a political outsider, will... http://faegrebdc.com/trump-administration-forecast-changes-to-key-policies-expected 14 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 In January 2017, Donald Trump will begin his term as the nation’s 45th President. Both bodies of Congress will also be under Republican control. Trump’s win brought Republican victories to Minnesota as well. The Minnesota House will remain in... http://faegrebdc.com/minnesota-legislative-update-2016-election-results 10 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 The election of Republican Donald Trump as President and a Republican-controlled House and Senate means that repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — long a top but unattainable Republican priority — is now a looming reality. It goes without saying... http://faegrebdc.com/obamacare-after-obama-a-nascent-trump-administration-considers-options 10 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 While much attention is being paid to what the health care agenda for the next presidential administration will look like and who the key players will be, stakeholders need to be preparing for near-term opportunities and challenges looming ahead in... http://faegrebdc.com/understanding-the-health-care-agenda-during-the-lame-duck-session 04 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 The White House The worst kept secret in all of politics is, “What are the key swing states?” in any election. At this point if you live in Ohio, North Carolina, Florida or Nevada, you do not need a reminder. The outcome of these states, in... http://faegrebdc.com/insurance-and-financial-services-election-cheat-sheet-what-to-watch 02 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 On October 31, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) awarded $25.5 million to 22 states to enhance their enforcement and oversight of health insurers with select Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations and reforms. These awards speak to... http://faegrebdc.com/trick-or-treat-new-grants-position-states-to-be-more 02 Nov 2016 00:00:00:000 The 2016 election has been the focal point of the country for the past year. As Americans prepare to head to the polls on Tuesday, November 8, we wanted to provide a quick primer on how the election could impact the balance of power and leadership... http://faegrebdc.com/election-cheat-sheet-what-to-watch 25 Oct 2016 00:00:00:000 Formal complaints were recently filed with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) regarding alleged discrimination against HIV patients in individual market health plans. Filed by the Center for Health Law... http://faegrebdc.com/when-is-an-insurance-benefit-discriminatory-landmark-complaint-seeks-to 20 Oct 2016 00:00:00:000 On August 9, Minnesota held its 2016 primary elections, and November 8 is 2016 general election day. In addition to the presidential race, all eight of Minnesota’s congressional districts and all 201 seats in the Minnesota Senate and House of... http://faegrebdc.com/2016-primary-election-recap-and-general-election-preview 17 Oct 2016 00:00:00:000 Effective October 17, 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) have expanded the scope and nature of transactions permitted by U.S. persons... http://faegrebdc.com/loosening-of-cuban-sanctions-presents-new-opportunities-for-us-industries 17 Oct 2016 00:00:00:000 On Wednesday, September 28, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5303, the Water Resources Development Act of 2016. House action comes on the heels of the Senate’s passage of its version (S. 2848) earlier this month. Lawmakers will now work... http://faegrebdc.com/house-passes-water-infrastructure-bill-setting-up-conference-with-senate 03 Oct 2016 00:00:00:000 Current farm legislation, outlined in the 2014 U.S. Farm Bill, runs through the 2018 crop year. Congressional consideration of a new farm bill will begin with hearings in 2017, but the process will likely be a challenging one. Many factors will... http://faegrebdc.com/what-to-expect-in-the-run-up-to-a-new 26 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 For a law originally passed in response to the energy crisis of the 1970s, The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) has received a lot of recent attention from Congress and advocates for both investor-owned utilities (IOUs) and the... http://faegrebdc.com/ferc-weighs-purpa-changes-what-do-renewable-energy-stakeholders-need 22 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 (This was updated on August 15, 2016, with new developments) In a proposed regulation published in July 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed to shorten the maximum length of short-term health insurance policies from 12... http://faegrebdc.com/ripple-in-aca-risk-pool-could-beach-short-term-health 12 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new program that seeks to document all “arrest-related deaths.” The DOJ indicated it will be using media reports and other sources to confirm fatal cases rather than waiting for police departments to... http://faegrebdc.com/department-of-justice-requests-comments-on-proposed-data-collection-of 11 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 On July 25, 2016, the United Stated Department of Agriculture (UDSA) published a Notice of Solicitation of Applications (NOSA) for the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program (9003 Program). The 9003... http://faegrebdc.com/new-usda-guidance-for-the-biorefinery-renewable-chemical-and-biobased 03 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a final guidance on July 29, 2016, saying that it does not plan to require pre-market review for low-risk "general wellness products," such as wearable fitness monitors, pedometers and sleep trackers... http://faegrebdc.com/christmas-in-july-for-wellness-apps-and-devices 01 Aug 2016 00:00:00:000 Based on QHP Certification instructions issued on July 22, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will collect administrative and performance data from health insurers that participate in the federally-run health insurance... http://faegrebdc.com/transparencys-opaque-beginning-cms-starts-implementing-aca-transparency-requirements 27 Jul 2016 00:00:00:000 On July 14, 2016, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals determined that a warrant issued under the Stored Communications Act (SCA) is subject to the same territorial restrictions as a traditional warrant: the government’s reach is limited to the... http://faegrebdc.com/second-circuit-stored-communications-act-warrants-cannot-reach-overseas-data 19 Jul 2016 00:00:00:000 On July 14, 2016, after more than a year of on-and-off debate and failed attempts at legislative compromise, Congress finally passed a bill to require the creation of a federal labeling standard for bioengineered food within two years. The Senate... http://faegrebdc.com/congress-passes-ge-labeling-bill-president-obama-expected-to-sign 15 Jul 2016 00:00:00:000 Less than a third of health plan members in California are able to schedule an appointment with their preferred physician, according to a study published in Health Affairs on July 6, 2016. The study, completed by researchers at University of... http://faegrebdc.com/when-a-good-doc-is-hard-to-find-study-suggests 08 Jul 2016 00:00:00:000 On June 20, 2016, The Kaiser Family Foundation issued the first ever broad-based study of Medicare Advantage hospital networks. The study — "Medicare Advantage Hospital Networks: How Much Do They Vary?"— analyzed 409 plans in 20 counties across the... http://faegrebdc.com/broad-examination-of-narrow-networks-first-of-its-kind-study 22 Jun 2016 00:00:00:000 On June 10, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released updated Marketing Guidelines that dictate how Medicare Advantage and Part D products can be described and sold. While most of the 100+ pages of guidance remain the same... http://faegrebdc.com/no-game-changers-but-many-game-tweakers-the-new-medicare 15 Jun 2016 00:00:00:000 After several years of work, Congress passed the bipartisan Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act – more commonly referred to as the TSCA Modernization Act of 2015 – and President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law... http://faegrebdc.com/the-tsca-modernization-act-passed-the-senate-heres-what-you 08 Jun 2016 00:00:00:000 On June 3, 2016, Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin (D) signed a bill into law that aims to increase the transparency and rationale for prescription drug prices. The law gives a new state board responsibility to identify up to 15 prescription drugs on which... http://faegrebdc.com/vermonts-verity-first-in-nation-drug-price-transparency-law 07 Jun 2016 00:00:00:000 Governor Mark Dayton has signed the Supplemental Appropriations Bill but has yet to decide whether to sign or veto the Omnibus Tax bill. This action means that only one of the four Minnesota legislative priorities from the 2016 session has become... http://faegrebdc.com/special-minnesota-session-update-06-01-2016 01 Jun 2016 00:00:00:000 This was the shortest Minnesota Legislative session in recent history, lasting a mere 77 days from March 8, 2016, to May 23, 2016. It produced a hectic pace which ended with mixed results. As lawmakers headed into the session, there were four... http://faegrebdc.com/minnesota-legislative-wrap-up-05-25-2016 25 May 2016 00:00:00:000 When the 2016 Minnesota Legislative Session was adjourned sine die at midnight on Sunday, May 22, legislators had sent a $259 million Omnibus Tax Bill and a $182 million Supplemental Appropriations Bill to Governor Mark Dayton. The other two major... http://faegrebdc.com/minnesota-weekly-legislative-update-05-24-2016 24 May 2016 00:00:00:000