May 31, 2023 By: Marissa Alkhazov Governor Jay Inslee signed HB 1047, Washington State’s Toxic-Free Cosmetic Act (the Act) into law on May 15, 2023. The Act bans some of the most concerning chemicals added into cosmetic and personal care products, including PFAS, phthalates, formaldehyde and formaldehyde releasing agents ...
On May 16, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) announced a $350,000 settlement with MedEvolve, Inc., a practice and revenue cycle management and practice analytics software services company, to resolve alleged violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) regulations ...
For a decade or more, Meta has been sending Facebook data from European users – in the form of photos, chat, posts, and more – over to its parent company in the US for storage. Since the Snowden revelations, Europe has been aware that this data has been open to US intelligence services on a large scale, without – it says – the protections and accountability afforded to people in Europe ...
As we gear up for the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s first full public hearing on 13 June, here is a reminder of what has been covered to date, followed by a list of issues to be covered within the scope of the first (Module 1) investigation. Inquiry to date the Inquiry was formally established by the Chair (Baroness Heather Hallett) on 28 June 2022, at which time the final Terms of Reference were published by the Government (UK COVID-19 Inquiry: terms of reference - GOV.UK (www.gov ...
The hemp industry's explosive growth following the 2018 Farm Bill has produced a number of consequences, some intended and many more almost certainly never considered by lawmakers. The development of THC acetate ester (THCO), a synthetic substance created from hemp, almost certainly falls within the latter category. Recently, THCO has gained substantial popularity. In a Feb ...
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has issued a report which provides guidance on supporting employees who are experiencing fertility issues. The report surveyed 300 workers who experienced difficulties with fertility while in employment within the last five years, as well as over 2,000 senior HR professionals and decision makers ...
SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan (SyCipLaw) has just published the SyCipLaw TMT and Data Bulletin covering significant Philippine legal and regulatory developments in the technology, media, telecommunications and data space, from late 2022 to the first quarter of 2023. It also notes links to podcasts and materials relating to TMT and dataPLUSa commentary on whether AI can replace a local counsel ...
In recent years, China is continuously exploring the regulations of LDT (Laboratory Developed Tests, as defined below). With the introduction of a series of new regulations, many outstanding multinational and local companies have participated in the research of LDT. At this stage, general provisions can no longer meet the demand of the practice of LDT industry ...
On 10 May 2023, theInformation Regulator(the “Regulator”), an independent body established to monitor and enforce compliance by public and private bodies with the provisions of the promotion of access to information act, 2000 and the protection of personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA”) announced that it had issued anEnforcement Noticeto the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (“theDepartment”) in terms of POPIA on 9 May 2023 ...
Gone are the days when satellite communication was limited to those brick phones with long antennas. Satellite communications services are gaining traction globally as they offer alternative ways of connecting end users to the Internet and other related communications services. However, as electronic communications services via satellites become more popular and accessible, service providers are met with regulatory challenges ...
Have you ever browsed one of your favourite online retail platforms and noticed an entirely new clothing collection launched by the brand for your metaverse avatar? In February of this year, we stumbled upon Zara’s Valentine’s Tale range. The collection comprised 22 digital assets which included necklaces, earrings, rings and bags that could be purchased for your avatar through Zepeto, which is Asia’s largest metaverse platform ...
As highlighted in our previous article, the Infected Blood Inquiry’s first interim report established considerable liabilities in relatively short order, recommending that £100,000 be paid “without delay” to victims and partners bereaved by infections transmitted by blood transfusions and blood products. Sir Brian Langstaff, former High Court judge and current Chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry, released his second interim report on 5 April 2023 ...
May 15, 2023 By: Meghna Parikh The expiration of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (“PHE”) on May 11, 2023 could have created a “prescription cliff” leaving patients without access to controlled substances. During the PHE, telemedicine flexibilities allowed patients to have access to Schedule II and narcotic controlled substances via telemedicine without a prior in-person medical evaluation ...
The end of the COVID-19 public health emergency on May 11, 2023 has left many healthcare facilities confused about whether the vaccination mandate for Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) certified healthcare facilities still stands ...
The EU regulator has harmonized the maximum levels for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in hemp seeds throughout the Union within the food contaminants framework. This EU harmonization puts pressure on conservative national food laws such as the Belgian Royal Decree of 31 August 2021, which treats hemp seeds as a prohibited food.The situation in Belgium, however, is changing to better align it with EU law ...
The Pensions Regulator's General Code could be published any day now, but what is it, and why has it been so delayed? Back in March Charles Counsell, then CEO of the Pensions Regulator (TPR) confirmed in an interview with Pensions Age Magazine that the long anticipated consolidated code of practice would be published in the spring, under the new title of the “General Code” ...
The UK government has proposed legislation (the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill) that would materially affect merger control for transactions of both UK and non-UK companies. This comment addresses the proposed introduction of a mandatory reporting regime as a prior step to the current merger control regime in the UK ...
The UK government has proposed legislation (Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament) that would materially affect merger control for transactions. This comment addresses the proposed changes that would be of concern to those engaged in mergers affecting local markets ...
Ohio lawmakers are considering a bill – House Bill 89 – that would bar medical, nursing, and other medical-professional students from performing pelvic, prostate, or rectal exams on anesthetized or otherwise unconscious patients without prior approval.[1] Intimate exams are used in clinical rotations as an opportunity for training, but opposition to the practice involving unconscious and uninformed patients has grown in recent years ...
Following the passage of House Bill 122 last year, the State Medical Board of Ohio (“Ohio Board”) has released final administrative rules governing the provision of telehealth services by Ohio physicians and certain other provider types.[i] The final rules, which became effective February 28, 2023, continue the recent trend of regulators, such as the Drug Enforcement Agency,[ii] largely reverting back to pre-pandemic telehealth restrictions ...
Data privacy professionals have characterized the data privacy risks associated with ChatGPT as a “nightmare.” In order to function, open artificial intelligence programs (“OpenAI”) like ChatGPT require huge amounts of data in order to learn and evolve. Where do the programmers get that data? From you and me without our knowledge or permission ...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) has announced that several notifications of enforcement discretion issued during the COVID-19 public health emergency (“PHE”) will expire concurrently with the expiration of the PHE on May 11, 2023 at 11:59 PM ...
On April 18, 2023, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems a staggering $787.5 million to settle a defamation lawsuit. Particularly startling about the settlement is that Dominion was valued at around $51 million as recently as 2018, meaning that the settlement resulted in a payout up to fifteen times Dominion’s value. Dominion filed the lawsuit in response to publicly broadcast statements by Fox News and its guests after the 2020 election ...
