With COVID-19 numbers beginning to stabilize and some states announcing re-opening dates, many businesses are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. With that, many employers are asking key questions: What do we do to get ready and how do we do so without jeopardizing the safety of our workforce and our customers or clients? There is much to consider and there seems to be no crystal clear path forward for employers ...
As the delivery of health care continues to evolve and hospitals bear additional pressures to adapt to new payment models, more nonprofit hospitals are partnering with for-profit providers, through a sale, joint venture, or other arrangements. Partnerships between independent nonprofit hospitals and larger health care systems (nonprofit and for-profit) have been growing over the past two decades ...
Following a month-long retrial, a South Carolina jury has concluded that Tuomey Healthcare System, Inc. (Tuomey) violated the Stark Law and the False Claims Act by illegally paying referring physicians. The jury found that Tuomey’s compensation arrangements with referring physicians were impermissible under the Stark Law, resulting in almost 22,000 false claims and more than $39 million in overpayments ...
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been one of the most sweeping, and most divisive, pieces of legislation related to healthcare in a generation. More ink has been spilled over enactment, constitutionality, and repeal than any other government healthcare program. With the election of Donald Trump, and a Republican-controlled Congress, the repeal of the ACA is all but assured ...
On March 30, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a major new initiative to target quality of care and fraud and abuse in elder care by forming 10 Elder Justice Task Forces throughout the United States. The DOJ intends to build these task forces on interdisciplinary teams – including Health Care Fraud Enforcement Action or HEAT Teams – already at work in several districts across the country. The teams include representatives from the U.S ...
On April 8, 2020, the IRS published Revenue Procedure 2020-23 (Rev. Proc. 2020-23) that provides partnerships a limited opportunity to amend their 2018 and 2019 tax returns and issue amended Schedule K-1s to partners to take advantage of the retrospective Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act changes ...
In the age of COVID-19, “irrevocable” doesn’t always mean “forever.” The IRS is providing significant tax advantages to companies that are now permitted to take back their once irrevocable elections regarding the deduction of interest expenses for improvements to non-residential real estate ...
In recognizing the serious humanitarian crisis and potential health ramifications to the population of the United States and the World, the IRS announced on Thursday, October 29, 2014, in a pair of Notices that the Ebola outbreak occurring in the Western Africa countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone is a qualified disaster for certain purposes of the Internal Revenue Code ...
The IRS plans to begin recurring market segment examination of tax-exempt bonds, including the hospital market, according to statements made by Bob Griffo, Supervisory Tax Law Specialist with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), at a recent National Association of Bond Lawyers conference. For the first year of the program, the IRS plans to examine between 20 to 40 tax-exempt hospitals ...
On July 9, TICUA and Waller presented a webinar on the Campus SaVE Act ("SaVE"), addressing the newly effective legislative amendments to the Clery Act incorporated into the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013. A recording of the webinar is available on the TICUA website ...
In recent years, the Department of Justice, the FDA and the FBI have stepped up enforcement of the Food Drug and Cosmetic Act’s (FDCA) drug importation, distribution and misbranding requirements particularly with respect to high-priced and difficult-to-obtain drugs used in cancer treatment. Recently, these efforts suffered an unexpected setback in the Sixth Circuit following the United States’ decision to abandon its prosecution against an East Tennessee Oncologist and his wife ...
In light of the COVID-19 National Health Emergency, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) introduced temporary policies related to H-1B-sponsored physicians who are completing their three-year J-1 waiver service commitment requirements. The temporary policies relate to full-time work requirements and the ability of J-1 waiver-approved physicians to provide telehealth services ...
On November 20, President Obama addressed the nation, unveiling a plan to change our U.S. immigration system through executive action. His announcement largely focused on providing temporary legal status to undocumented immigrants by expanding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to encompass a broader class of children to certain qualifying parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents ...
On April 22, 2020, President Trump signed an Executive Order temporarily suspending the entry of certain immigrants into the United States. The Executive Order only affects foreign nationals who are currently outside the United States applying for permanent residence through the immigrant visa process at a U.S. consular post. Initially, the Executive Order will be in effect for 60 days, unless the administration determines that it should be extended ...
In a policy shift aimed at providing families with more economic flexibility during the often lengthy green card application process, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that, effective May 26, 2015, certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrants seeking employment-based lawful permanent resident status will be eligible to apply for employment authorization ...
St. Luke’s Health System’s 2012 acquisition of Saltzer Medical Group, Idaho’s largest independent multi-specialty physician practice group, violated federal and state antitrust laws according to a U.S. District Court holding issued on Friday, January 24, 2014. The Court ordered divestiture of the practice. The FTC and the Idaho Attorney General filed the Complaint seeking to block the sale on March 12, 2013. In response, St ...
Mayor Cooper‘s announcement that he was closing bars in Nashville as a result of the coronavirus epidemic quickly went viral among locals. We have been hearing the same question from tons of bar owners: What do we do? We recommend that you serve food and provide a safe environment for your customers. If you have a decent food menu and loyal customers, become a restaurant in this time of need ...
Zoom, the social platform which has become nearly ubiquitous in the past few weeks, has unintentionally introduced the world to a new term: “Zoom Bombing." Millions of people are struggling to maintain some semblance of normalcy as they continue to engage in personal and business interactions while simultaneously practicing social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic ...
While the Families First Act creates paid leave obligations for smaller employers, companies are able to apply for relief through applicable tax credits. Here's how to do it: Employers eligible for tax credits for paid leave provided under the FFCRA can report their total qualified leave wages and the related credits for each quarter on their federal employment tax returns, usually Form 941: Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return ...
Now that the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) has been signed into, law, small businesses may be wondering what they can do to get a Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loan into their bank accounts as soon as possible so they can pay employees. In case you missed it, check out our bulletin here for a detailed description of the terms and conditions of and eligibility for these very favorable loans ...
The House narrowly passed the Build Back Better bill on Nov. 19 with a vote of 220 to 213, after an overnight delay. The $1.75 trillion social spending bill includes the ability for Medicare to negotiate drug prices, new hearing benefits for Medicare beneficiaries, and extended Affordable Care Act subsidies. The bill will still have to pass the Senate, and Senate Democrats are expected to make revisions ...
Commentators and lawyers continue to make blanket statements regarding lack of business interruption coverage for losses caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). They contend that coronavirus-related losses cannot satisfy the “direct physical loss of or damage to [covered] property” language contained in many policies to trigger coverage in the first place ...
2020 was already expected to be a challenging year for the retail industry and the worldwide pandemic only intensified the underlying troubles. Heading into the year, one estimate projected that 12,000 major chain stores would close in 2020. Today, a number of high-profile brands are in bankruptcy and tenants and landlords alike are struggling to recover from COVID-19 related closures ...
As the end of 2020 mercifully approaches and the presidential election is now in the rearview mirror, Waller’s Financial Services Industry Team is looking forward to 2021 to bring you its insight into what the future may hold for participants in the financial services industry ...
