Legal & Regulatory Issues

Jon Leibowitz, the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, will resign in mid-February after a four-year tenure, according to a New York Times report.

The Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that a man's online criticism of a physician is protected speech, according to a Star Tribune report.

With just one year remaining before the largest parts of the federal health reform law take effect, 2013 will be a busy year for hospitals as they prepare for the biggest changes in healthcare since Medicare was introduced in 1965.

CMS has d ropped an inquiry into alleged violations at University of Missouri Health System in Columbia after the organization vowed to make changes, according to an Associated Press/Republic report.

The healthcare law's Independent Payment Advisory Board has been under fire from many on all sides of the political spectrum since it was proposed, and filling its 15 seats with qualified healthcare experts may be its greatest challenge yet, according…

The median salary of a chief compliance officer in a healthcare organization is roughly $110,000, according to a recent survey from the Health Care Compliance Association.

Arizona lawmakers introduced a bill last week that would require hospital staff to call federal immigration officials or local law enforcement if patients cannot prove their legal residence, according to a Los Angeles Times report.

HHS' Office of the Inspector General has found $125.2 million in improper Medicare payments made to inmates and illegal immigrants between 2009 and 2011, although that amount pales in comparison to total Medicare expenditures.

Camden, N.J.-based Cooper Health System has agreed to a $12.5 million settlement to resolve federal and state allegations of kickbacks, according to a Bloomberg report.

Nashville, Tenn.-based Hospital Corporation of America has been ordered to pay the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City (Mo.) $161.9 million to fulfill obligations it accepted when it bought Health Midwest in Kansas City, according to a Kansas City…