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The Biden administration issed a final rule regarding HIPAA and the release of information of women seeking abortions and banned any disclosure of PHI pertaining to reproductive health. This is aimed at prohibiting the information on women in states where abortion is limited that travel have to to abortion friendly states from having their identities known. This rule only applies to abortions provided under legal circumstances so it would not apply to those states which have banned abortions. The providers in the banned abortion states are also protected if their patients receive an out of state abortion. Watch for the law suits to come on this one.
The Biden administration also has a new rule to be overseen by the individual states setting nurse ratios for nursing homes. It sets the number of hours that various nursing licensed individuals will need to spend per patient. Watch for nursing homes, especially in rural or dense urban areas with large Medicaid populations to close. The money just ain't there. At the same time home health providers will need to spend at least 80% of Medicaid treatments to salaries for aides and nurses. Lots of luck with this one as well.
The FTC has passed a rule that bans non-compete clauses in for profit businesses. They do not have the authority over non-profits. It is unknown whether this rule will ever go into effect as the same day as it was announced it was challenged in a Texas suit by the Chamber of Commerce. Even if it passed legal mustard the time will be years down the road. The interesting thing is the definition of a non-profit. A not for profit hospital or physician entity may be classified as a for profit if they make a profit for their owners. This is a FTC definition that will be used.
The Biden administration in its fourth year has promulgated another rule that would again give protections against discrimination in health care to gay and trans people. This was taken away by the Trump administration.
The Biden administration is NOT doing the final rule banning the sale of menthol cigarettes because it would offend the black voters that Biden hopes to get in the fall election.
Virginia has a new rule that requires all hospitals with a ED to have a doctor on site at all times. There will be no more on-call physicians for the EDs. Welcome to the new century.
Kentucky is the first state to pass a law to shield healthcare providers from criminal prosecution for medical errors. This is good after the fiasco in Tennessee and in Colorado.
California has placed a 3% cap on healthcare prices phasing in starting in 2025. It is the 9th state to put a cap on the expenses. The state is all about equity not access. Top
DISCLAIMER: Although this article is updated periodically, it reflects the author's point of view at the
time of publication. Nothing in this article constitutes legal advice. Readers
should consult with their own legal counsel before acting on any of the
information presented.