HealthRSS

  • February 9, 2010

    Obamas Launch Fight Against Childhood Obesity

    As part of an effort by the first lady, President Barack Obama has signed a memorandum creating the first task force on childhood obesity to review programs and policies relating to child nutrition and physical activity and develop a national action plan.

  • February 9, 2010

    Officials Sound Alarm On Anthem Blue Cross Rate Hike

    U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has asked WellPoint Inc. subsidiary Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield to publicly justify its recent proposal to hike premiums as much as 39 percent for California health insurance customers.

  • February 5, 2010

    Reps To Pose Insurance Antitrust Exemption Repeal

    Two Democrats are poised to introduce a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives that would repeal the federal antitrust exemption for medical malpractice and health insurers, moving forward on a component of the House's now-stalled health care overhaul.

  • February 4, 2010

    SD Legislature Says No To Federal Health Care Bills

    The South Dakota Legislature has passed a resolution indicating opposition to health care reform proposals passed in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, saying it “strongly urges” Congress not to adopt either measure or institute any new federal review, oversight or preemption of state health insurance laws.

  • February 4, 2010

    McCain Proposal Would Increase Supplement Oversight

    Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has announced that he will introduce legislation to increase government scrutiny of the dietary supplement industry.

  • February 3, 2010

    Agencies Roll Out Rules On Mental Health Coverage

    Three federal agencies on Wednesday jointly issued interim rules banning group health insurance plans from limiting or raising costs on benefits for mental health or substance abuse disorder treatment, aiming to establish parity for those benefits with standard medical and surgical coverage.

  • January 29, 2010

    Obama Seeks More Cash To Fight Health Care Fraud

    Speaking at the first national summit on health care fraud, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has revealed that President Barack Obama plans to request $561 million in fiscal year 2011 to fight the problem — an increase of 80 percent.

  • January 28, 2010

    USPTO To Update Patent Term System After Ruling

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office will allow patentees to request a recalculation of their patent term adjustment without a fee or petition while the agency makes updates to its calculation system in light of the recent appeals court ruling in Wyeth v. Kappos.

  • January 28, 2010

    House Panel Advances Inquiry Into Health Bill Deal

    A U.S. House of Representatives committee has advanced a resolution of inquiry sponsored by Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas, that would force the White House to turn over details of a deal cut with major health-industry groups related to pending health care legislation.

  • January 25, 2010

    NJ Ratchets Up Penalties For Medical Waste Dumping

    As one of the final acts of his single term in office, former New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed a bill that doubles certain penalties related to the illegal ocean dumping of medical waste.

  • January 20, 2010

    FDA Taps Acting Director To Lead Devices Unit

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Devices and Radiological Health gained some stability Wednesday as acting Director Jeffrey E. Shuren was named permanent director of the regulatory office in charge of inspecting medical devices.

  • January 19, 2010

    New DOJ Position To Oversee Discovery Initiatives

    The U.S. Department of Justice has appointed a new national coordinator for its criminal discovery initiatives, a move that comes in the wake of some well-publicized discovery missteps, most notably during the prosecution of former Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska.

  • January 15, 2010

    Obama Wants To Limit Biologic Protection In Health Bill

    White House officials are reportedly pushing to lower the patent exclusivity threshold set in health care legislation to protect innovator biologic drugs from generic biosimilars, as negotiations to merge the U.S. House of Representatives' and Senate's health bills enter their final stages.

  • January 14, 2010

    Sens. Press For Insurance Antitrust Exemption Repeal

    In a letter to President Barack Obama and the leaders of both chambers of Congress, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and 18 other senators pushed for the repeal of federal antitrust exemptions for medical malpractice and health insurers.

  • January 13, 2010

    FTC Tells Congress To Scrap Pay-For-Delay

    The Federal Trade Commission has called for Congress to ban pay-for-delay in its health care reform package, saying that the settlements between generic drugmakers and their brand-name rivals will cost consumers and the government $35 billion over the next 10 years.

  • January 12, 2010

    Obama Backs Repealing Insurance Antitrust Exemption

    Less than a month after U.S. Senate Democrats dropped a provision to repeal the health insurance industry's long-standing antitrust exemption, President Barack Obama reportedly is expressing support for the measure, which remains in the House of Representatives’ version of the health care reform legislation.

  • January 11, 2010

    Consumer Groups, AAI Push Pay-For-Delay Ban

    The American Antitrust Institute, together with a coalition of consumer groups, is urging lawmakers to include a ban on pay-for-delay pharmaceutical patent settlements in the final version of health care reform legislation.

  • January 7, 2010

    EU Launches Antitrust Probe Over Lundbeck Drug

    The European Commission has opened a formal antitrust investigation into Danish drugmaker H. Lundbeck A/S, principally examining whether the company has restricted the entry of a generic version of its antidepressant drug citalopram.

  • January 4, 2010

    Spectranetics To Pay $5M Over Unapproved Lasers

    Medical laser manufacturer Spectranetics Corp. has agreed to pay $5 million in fines and penalties in a settlement with U.S. authorities over claims that the company illegally imported and sold unapproved devices for use in patients.

  • January 1, 2010

    Health Legislation To Watch In 2010

    The U.S. Senate's Christmas Eve vote to pass its $870 billion health care reform bill has set the stage for a frenetic legislative 2010 that at a minimum will include a high-stakes conference committee, a massive rulemaking effort and potentially more legislation.

Expert Analysis

  • Defending Patent Infringement With 'Ensnarement'

    Even after the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in DePuy Spine Inc. v. Medtronic Sofamor Danek, ensnarement remains a complicated and potentially confusing defense. It should not be automatically overlooked, however. In many cases it may be a viable option, says George Hoskins of Calfee Halter & Griswold LLP.

  • Evidence Of Medical Discounting

    Historically, the collateral source rule has barred the admissibility of evidence at trial to show that a plaintiff's losses have been compensated from other sources, such as the plaintiff's insurance or workers’ compensation benefits. The Indiana Supreme Court ruling in Stanley v. Walker should be urged upon courts in other jurisdictions in an effort to provide juries with a more realistic picture of plaintiffs’ damages, says Carrie A. Koontz of Kopka Pinkus Dolin & Eads LLC.

  • Medicare Reporting — Those Who Hesitate Are Lost

    An entity that receives a large number of personal injury claims and is unprepared to comply with the Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 could incur catastrophic civil penalties in a short amount of time, say Joseph W. Hovermill and Michael L. Haslup of Miles & Stockbridge PC.

  • Effects Of Biosimilars Legislation On Patent Litigation

    If enacted, health care reform legislation threatens to convert the U.S. patent system into a two-tiered regime in which biotech medicine patent holders would have fewer rights to enforce their patents. This could diminish the value of biotech patents, say Bruce S. Manheim and Denise L. Loring of Ropes & Gray LLP.

  • A Trap For Unwary Catholic Health Care Providers

    The Catholic Church's recently issued Bishop Guidance and Papal Encyclical are significant because unions may translate what are only suggested guidelines by the church on employee organizing into pro-labor dogma. If Catholic health care providers fall prey to such a tactic, the result may prove disastrous, particularly for Catholic hospitals, say K. Bruce Stickler and Simona F. McConnell of Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.

  • FDA Deviations In Menaflex Knee Device Clearance

    The Menaflex report is an exceptional example of critical U.S. Food and Drug Administration self-scrutiny and will undoubtedly be the subject of continuing congressional oversight. It also signals FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg’s commitment to renewing public confidence in the agency’s credibility and product reviews, say Paul T. Kim, James M. Flaherty Jr. and Kalah Auchincloss of Foley Hoag LLP.

  • FTC Acquisition Challenges In Health Care

    The Federal Trade Commission has challenged some proposed and completed acquisitions of interest this summer, three of which have resulted in the abandonment of the proposed mergers, says Diane Green-Kelly of Reed Smith LLP.

  • Public Option Compromise For Insurance Competition

    In the interest of having an acceptable Plan B in our back pocket in the event the public option is defeated, I propose an effective strategy used by President Nixon when he authored and signed the HMO Act of 1973 ... Yes, President Nixon, says C. Mitchell Goldman of Duane Morris LLP.

  • China’s Impending Disclosure Of Origin Law

    As of Oct. 1, 2009, China’s patent law will require disclosure of the origin of any genetic resources used in an invention for which patent protection is sought in China. With the entry into force of these changes to its patent law, China joins a growing number of countries that impose similar requirements on patent applicants, say Michael A. Gollin and Thomas F. Barry of Venable LLP.

  • Patent Reform And The Future Of Pharma Patents

    The patent reform act would create a post-grant review proceeding and an “enhanced” inter partes re-examination proceeding. Both are viewed by proponents as vehicles for weeding out “bad” patents. But are these new weapons likely to be used primarily against pharma patents? ask Herbert D. Hart III of McAndrews Held & Malloy Ltd. and Malaika Durham Tyson, Ph.D.