The American Relief Act, 2025, signed into law on December 21, included a short-term extension of certain telehealth waivers that went into effect in the early days of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. These waivers, for telehealth services provided to Medicare beneficiaries, had been set to expire on December 31, but have now been
2025 Healthcare Mergers & Acquisitions: What To Expect; How To Prepare; Choosing The Right Deal
2025 promises to see a significant increase in the volume of healthcare mergers, acquisitions and consolidations. On Thursday, January 23, Rivkin Radler’s first Health Law Executive Briefing, 2025 Healthcare Mergers & Acquisitions, will take the form of a Q&A session led by Benjamin Malerba and featuring Norton Travis, veteran healthcare executive and the newest…
Owners of Transportation Company Defrauded Medicaid of $3.8M
The New York State Attorney General’s Office announced on December 5 that Muhammad Rizwan Khan, Muhammad Usman Khan and Farhan Khan and their Orange County-based transportation companies, Tristate Express NY, Inc., Meditrans NY Inc. and Empire Trans NY Inc., pleaded guilty to various felony grand larceny charges in connection with a fraudulent scheme that resulted…
CTA Enforcement Halted Again
In a new twist to the ongoing legal battle over the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has reinstated a nationwide injunction blocking its enforcement. The December 26 decision reverses a ruling issued just three days earlier that had briefly allowed the law to proceed, leaving businesses grappling with renewed uncertainty.…
Fifth Circuit Resurrects CTA; New Filing Deadline 1/13/25 [SUPERSEDED – SEE THE 12/27 POST]
On December 23, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the stay on the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), reinstating its enforcement nationwide. The CTA requires certain non-exempt entities to report the identities of their beneficial owners to the U.S. Treasury Department in order to combat financial crimes such as money laundering and terrorism financing. But…
LI Doctor Pleads Guilty to $900K Fraud Scheme
Kenneth Fishberger, a Long Island internist with nearly 50 years of medical experience, recently pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Prosecutors revealed that from 2013 to 2019, Fishberger ordered hundreds of medically unnecessary transcranial doppler (TCD) brain scans in exchange for kickbacks.
In this scheme, Fishberger collaborated with a salesperson and a principal…
CTA Update: U.S. Government Appeals Injunction & FinCEN Issues Guidance
Amid the ongoing legal battle over the Corporate Transparency Act (the CTA), updates continue to roll in. On December 5, the U.S. government filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the “Fifth Circuit”) from the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas…
HHS-OIG Issues Nursing Facility Compliance Program Guidance
On November 20, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released the “Nursing Facility ICPG,” an industry-specific compliance program guidance for nursing facilities.
Background
The Nursing Facility ICPG serves as a voluntary, nonbinding tool to assist facilities in reducing risks related to fraud, waste, and abuse, while…
Upset in the 11th Hour: Corporate Transparency Act Halted, for Now
The Law
The Corporate Transparency Act (the CTA), a law enacted by Congress requiring certain business entities to disclose beneficial ownership information (a BOI Report) to FinCEN, went into effect on January 1, 2024, and obligates reporting companies formed before January 1, 2024, to file BOI Reports on or before January 1, 2025.
The Challenge…
Million Dollar Penalty Imposed on Pain Management Practice Following HIPAA Breach
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced on December 3 that it imposed a $1.19 million penalty on Gulf Coast Pain Consultants, a pain management practice in Florida, following a security breach that affected over 34,000 individuals.
Gulf Coast filed a breach notification report with OCR, as required…
Third-party biller fraud may hook your practice, unless you protect yourself
A November 25 article in Part B News, “Third-party biller fraud may hook your practice, unless you protect yourself,” discussed the federal government’s recent fraud investigation of a medical biller in New York State and healthcare providers’ obligation to ensure the accuracy of their claims billing. Rivkin Radler’s Jeff Kaiser was quoted…