Kochhar & Co. Senior Partner, Suhas Srinivasiah, and Principal Associate, Ajay G Prasad, have co-authored the India chapter of the ‘Private Mergers & Acquisitions’ published by Practical Law, Thomson Reuters. The paper provides a holistic view of the M&A law in India and recent trends in the private M&A space” ...
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has announced several enforcement actions and settlements for violations of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules. OCR Secures Voluntary Resolution with Hospital to Settle Provision of Auxiliary Aids and Services to Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Individuals On Jan ...
On Jan. 15, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) shared a bulletin published by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Critical Infrastructure Protection Public-Private Partnership (ASPR CIP) regarding a number of vulnerabilities identified in Microsoft Windows operating systems, which if not addressed, pose significant a threat to the environment. On Jan ...
In December of 2019, the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy (“Board”) proposed rule changes for medical marijuana dispensaries. These proposed rule changes came on the heels of increased regulatory scrutiny of ownership structures and consulting arrangements in recent months.1 The proposed rules ostensibly seek to revise and clarify the Board’s position on changes of ownership and control of medical marijuana dispensaries ...
On Jan. 29, 2020, OCR released a notice regarding a recent federal court ruling in the case of Ciox Health, LLC v. Azar, et al ...
On Jan. 14, 2020, Microsoft ended support for its Windows 2007 operating system. This means Microsoft will no longer issue regular security updates for users of Window 2007. The process of issuing security updates for computer systems is commonly referred to as “patching.” Similar to fabric patches that repair holes in clothing, software patches repair holes in computer programs ...
Effective Oct. 1, 2017, Ohio Revised Code 4123.84 was amended to shorten the statute of limitations for the filing a traditional workers’ compensation claim (a standard physical injury resulting in either a lost-time, medical-only, or death claim) from two years following the alleged date of injury to one year. The amendment does not apply to either occupational disease claims or VSSR filings, which maintain the two-year statute ...
The Indonesian competition authority, the Indonesian Commission for the Supervision of Business Competition (the “KPPU”) issued Regulation No.4 of 2019 on the Procedures for the Supervision and Handling of Partnership Cases (“Reg 4/2019”). This regulation replaces No.1 of 2015 on the Procedure for the Supervision of Partnerships, as amended, and Regulation No.1 of 2017 on the Procedures for Handling Partnership Cases, as amended (“Old Regulation”) ...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released a final rule, which will require hospitals to publicly disclose pricing information, effective January 1, 2021 ...
Why is H-1B Filing Season Important? This is the only time of year (with minor exceptions indicated below) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) accepts H-1B specialty worker petitions for the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, 2020 ...
Beginning July 1, 2020, Pennsylvania’s Act 46 of 2019 (Act 46)[1] will require most Pennsylvania health insurers to cover medication synchronization services (MedSync) provided to patients taking two or more maintenance medications (i.e., medications for chronic long-term conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease) ...
On Jan. 8, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published an informational bulletin titled “Best Practices for Avoiding 340B Duplicate Discounts in Medicaid.”[1] The bulletin outlines seven regulatory strategies State Medicaid agencies may consider when developing policies for preventing the occurrence of duplicate discounts in Medicaid Fee-for-Services (FFS) and Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MCO) programs ...
Oh what a year it has been. 2019 has been a rollercoaster ride: Trump accelerates and then suddenly slams on the brakes on his tit-for-tat trade war with China. Hong Kong, hitherto the paradigm of pragmatism, lies smouldering as months of pro-democracy protests see no end. A Swedish girl (celebrating her 17th birthday just last Friday) becomes the unlikely face of environmentalism, shaming Boomers for doing nothing about climate change in front of the UN ...
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has announced several recent enforcement actions and settlements for violations of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules. Ambulance Company Pays $65,000 to Settle Allegations of Long-Standing HIPAA Noncompliance On Dec. 30, 2019, West Georgia Ambulance, Inc ...
On Dec. 23, 2019, in a unanimous decision in United Parcel Service, Inc.1, the National Labor Relations Board returned to its historic standards for arbitral deference.2 The decision expressly overrules the Board’s 2014 decision in Babcock & Wilcox Construction Co., Inc ...
On December 16, 2019, in Caesars Entertainment d/b/a Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, the National Labor Relations Board (Board) returned to the standard outlined in Register Guard, which announced that employees have no statutory right to use employer equipment, including IT equipment, for activity protected under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act.1 The decision expressly overrules the Board’s decision in Purple Communications, Inc ...
With a new year comes changes. And one change is a law tying business license applications to California's water quality laws. Beginning January 1, 2020, Senate Bill 205 will require that certain applicants for either a new business license or a renewal from cities or counties show that they are complying with the federal Clean Water Act and California's Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act ...
After five long years since the issuance of Law No.7 of 2014 on Trade (the "Trade Law"), the Government of Indonesia finally issued an implementing regulation on e-commerce on 20 November 2019, through Government Regulation No. 80 of 2019 on Trade through the Electronic System ("GR 80/2019"). This regulation is part of the Government's efforts to encourage internet-based transactions and trading as part of making Indonesia 4.0. GR 80/2019 has 19 chapters and an extensive scope ...
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), National Security Division (NSD), recently published updated[1] policy guidance, effective immediately, for companies considering whether to voluntarily self-disclose potentially criminal violations of U.S. export control and sanctions statutes.[2] The policy, dated Dec ...
In a long-anticipated decision on Dec. 16, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) scuttled a 2015 agency decision that presumptively prohibited employers from requiring confidentiality of investigative reports. In Apogee Retail, 368 NLRB No. 144 (2019), the NLRB returned to its previous standard that presumes the legality of the maintenance of work rules requiring confidentiality of investigative interviews between an employer and employee ...
Recent enforcement actions initiated by the Bureau of Industry and Security’s (“BIS”) Office of Antiboycott Compliance (“OAC”) serve as a warning to U.S. persons (including U.S. companies) with business interests in and around the Middle East. It is easy for the complacent to run afoul of OAC’s Antiboycott Regulations when evaluating and responding to otherwise routine documents such as a letters of credit, shipping certificates, or purchase orders ...
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), in Valley Hospital Medical Center, 368 N.L.R.B. 139 (Dec. 16, 2019), ruled an employer’s obligation to check off union dues expires along with the underlying collective bargaining agreement. This overrules a 2015 board decision and reestablishes a longstanding rule first articulated in 1962. Reasoning Employers and unions must negotiate in good faith over workers’ terms and conditions of employment ...
The DIFC has provided slightly more clarity as to how UAE Cabinet Decision 31 of 2019 (the Economic Substance Regulations, or ESR) will apply within Dubai’s financial free zone. Helpful as the guidance is, significant questions remain. The DIFC held a presentation on 17 December to discuss the Economic Substance Regulations. The first point of note was that all businesses in the DIFC must file an ESR notification by 31 March 2020 ...
Under a new state law that takes effect January 1, 2020, California health care facilities and other entities must report any written allegations that a physician or other healing arts licensee has sexually abused or engaged in sexual misconduct with respect to a patient. Sexual misconduct is defined as "inappropriate contact or communication of a sexual nature." SB 425 (Hill) amends the Business and Professions Code to add a new provision, Section 805.8 ...
As we approach the end of 2019, we look back on the requirement introduced by the Companies (Miscellaneous Reporting) Regulations 2018 (Regulations) for very large private companies to make a statement about their corporate governance arrangements. This statement relates to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2019 and as we head into 2020, the new year will bring with it the start of the first actual reporting period under the Regulations ...