Violence in the workplace is something all employers prohibit and try to prevent. Healthcare employers have a tougher time, because the violence often comes from patients. How do you best protect workers while still providing needed patient care? There are no federal laws addressing this issue, so some states have stepped in. Recently, Texas joined states like California in enacting statutory protections against workplace violence directed at healthcare workers.[1] Texas S.B ...
Following Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recent announcement in Parliament, it is now certain that there will be a Public Inquiry into the handling of the pandemic. What is the planned Inquiry likely to consider, and who might be involved? For over a year now, the government’s focus has been on the here and now - managing and responding to the rollercoaster that is the COVID-19 crisis ...
Knowing what to expect when going into the sale process and teaming up with experienced advisors is critical to making the sale of your business the crowning achievement of all of your hard work. This article discusses several steps in certain business sales, using a hypothetical company named ABC Manufacturing, and provides tips for success at each stage ...
We recently discussed how the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”) allocates $100 billion to the Public Health and Social Service Emergency Fund, to be distributed as relief funds to hospitals and other healthcare providers on the front lines of the coronavirus response (“Provider Relief Fund”) ...
B.C.’s Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry,[1] and the Public Health Agency of Canada,[2] have recommended that individuals who are not fully vaccinated[3] continue wearing masks in indoor public spaces. At the same time, public authorities are providing little to no guidance on how or when businesses can continue mask requirements ...
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), a historic $2 trillion relief package signed into law on March 27, 2020, seeks to address the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on several industries ...
In light of the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of new COVID-19 vaccines, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued new guidance on the legal implications of the COVID-19 vaccine under federal anti-discrimination laws. Employers should carefully consider these points when making decisions about employee vaccinations. 1. Employers can require employees to receive a COVID-19 vaccination ...
A summary of the key takeaways from a recent webinar on The Covid-19 Public Inquiry - Spotlight on the Care Sector. What is a Public Inquiry? A public inquiry is a state sponsored investigation into areas of public concern. Inquiries are set up and sponsored by the government, but they operate independently of the government. All inquiries have powers to compel the attendance of witnesses or provision of evidence ...
Obviously, they are all natural disasters that climate scientists believe will increase in severity and intensity in the coming years. And they are all events that nursing homes and assisted living facilities (and all Medicare/Medicaid certified health care providers) are legally required to prepare for in order to protect their residents and patients. More pointedly, though, they are all events which the U.S ...
A change in administrations from Republican to Democratic usually ushers in increased enforcement, regulation and strategic initiatives. Most of the Trump regulations and initiatives will likely be scrapped where possible. They will be replaced by rules and guidance documents that have been held in abeyance during the previous administration, as well as numerous new initiatives ...
Industrial facility owners and operators in West Virginia should be aware of new reporting requirements that will soon go into effect. In addition to currently mandated notifications to federal, state, and local agencies after certain events occur, some facilities will soon be required to notify the state within 15 minutes of discovering specific types of emergency events or be subject to a fine of up to $100,000 ...
The Department of Health and Human Resources (“DHHR”) was West Virginia’s largest executive agency until the Legislature passed House Bill 2006 earlier this month. For several years now, West Virginia lawmakers have been looking into how to handle the enormous agency, improve its function and oversight, and improve the management of the wide range of health and social programs administered by the DHHR. With an annual budget topping $7 ...
Special Report "COVID-19 in Central America" on special measures taken in each country of our region prepared by the multidisciplinary team of Consortium Legal. The information contained in this publication is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The information is constantly updated and is subject to change ...
On November 12, 2020, the Washington Supreme Court extended corporate attorney-client privilege protection to appropriate ex parte communications between defendant hospitals and their non-employee agents. The court’s decision in Hermanson v. MultiCare Health Sys., Inc ...
Last week, Waller launched an Ebola legal resource website. Since then, we have received positive feedback from our clients, follow-up questions and suggestions for additional topics we should cover. As the needs of our clients continue to evolve, we are updating the site regularly ...
How do we discipline employees that refuse to work due to the Ebola virus? What patient information is protected during an outbreak? How should we communicate with our employees about Ebola? Has OSHA issued new guidelines on Ebola for healthcare providers? These are just a few of the questions we are hearing from our clients ...
OSHA’s long-anticipated (as we have previously discussed) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard ("ETS") is out and, as promised, it will require companies with at least 100 employees – across all facilities – to either institute a vaccine mandate or compel unvaccinated employees to submit to weekly testing and workplace masking for at least the next six months ...
As all court cases do, the Supreme Court's landmark decision in West Virginia v. EPA last month addressed a specific question: whether the Environmental Protection Agency had the statutory authority to shut down power plants and reshape significant parts of the energy sector in its effort to reduce emissions. The answer was a plain and simple no. Equally clear was the court's argument, which has implications for administrative actions well beyond this case ...
After decades of debate, US healthcare reform became a reality in 2010 when President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) in March. Yet public opinion remains sharply divided on the merits of this sweeping legislation, both in terms of its ability to address the problems of access to, and the rising cost of, healthcare services and in terms of the financial burden on the federal and state governments of implementing ACA ...
Even though OSHA has advised that no specific standard covers the novel coronavirus, human resource and safety personnel must be mindful of the generally-applicable standards that might apply. OSHA has issued several guidelines that, while not the rule of law, do offer guidance on addressing COVID-19 issues, including recordkeeping and 300 log reporting obligations. On April 10, OSHA issued guidance that appeared to limit what cases would be required to be reported on OSHA 300 logs ...
As discussed in our previous Alert, the French government has imposed Sunshine-like obligations on the pharmaceutical industry. Article 2 of Law No 2011-2012 of 29 December 2011 on the Strengthening of Health Protection for Medicinal and Health Products ("loi relative au renforcement de la sécurité sanitaire du médicament et des produits de santé" or "Loi Bertrand") inserted Articles L. 1453-1 in the French Code of Public Health ("Code de la santé publique" or "CSP"). Article L ...
