Legal & Regulatory Issues

A California physician was convicted on 26 felony charges for fraudulently distributing an unapproved cancer treatment over a six-year period, according to a Nov. 3 release from the FDA. 

The Oklahoma Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling Nov. 9 that would have required Johnson &  Johnson to pay the state $465 million to address its role in the opioid epidemic, The New York Times reported. 

The Justice Department is investigating Oak Street Health, a Chicago-based network of primary care centers for Medicare beneficiaries, over potential False Claims Act violations, according to a filing the company submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission.  

President Joe Biden's administration issued a response Nov. 8 after a federal appeals court in New Orleans suspended a COVID-19 vaccination requirement for private employers with more than 100 employees. 

HHS' Office of Inspector General on Nov. 8 revised its protocol for self-disclosing healthcare fraud.

An audit from the HHS Office of Inspector General found that several of UPMC health plan's high-risk diagnosis codes did not meet federal standards, resulting in $6.4 million in overpayments from 2015 to 2016.

A class-action lawsuit filed Nov. 4 is accusing United Behavioral Health, a branch of UnitedHealthcare, of unjustly denying mental health claims.  

A federal appeals court in New Orleans has suspended a COVID-19 vaccination requirement announced by President Joe Biden's administration for private employers with more than 100 employees, according to The Washington Post.

The mayor of Chicago has confirmed that the city is cooperating with the FBI in the ongoing investigation into Loretto Hospital's vaccination program, Block Club Chicago reported Nov. 5. 

Eleven states sued President Joe Biden's administration Nov. 5 over a COVID-19 vaccination mandate on private employers with more than 100 employees.