The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment announced it will hold a public hearing prior to the adoption of proposed amendments to the Workers’ Compensation Rules of Procedure, Rules 16 and 18, regarding Utilization Standards and Medical Fee Schedule, respectively. Specifics of the Workers’ Compensation proposed and adopted rules can be viewed here. The hearing will take place on August [...]
On May 22, 2017, the Colorado Supreme Court issued a ruling that a piece of playground equipment that was not negligently constructed or maintained is not a “dangerous condition” under the “recreation-area waiver” of the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (CGIA). In so holding, the Court rejected the argument that the CGIA could not be invoked because a piece of “zip [...]
Earlier this month, the Patient Safety Act (HB17-1121), a bill requiring fingerprint-based criminal history record checks for many Colorado health professionals, died in the Senate Committee on State, Veterans, & Military Affairs when it was postponed indefinitely. The bill would have required applicants for initial licensure or certification, as well as current licensees and certificate holders, to submit to a [...]
In April, Gov. John Hickenlooper signed into law a bill sponsored by Sens. Irene Aguilar and Kevin Lundberg regarding the transparency of medical costs provided to patients by health care providers and facilities after it was passed by the Colorado legislature. Effective Jan. 1, 2018, the Transparency in Health Care Prices Act (SB 17-065) requires health care providers and facilities [...]
The United States Supreme Court issued a decision today on the special education case of Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District, holding that the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals applied the wrong standard in assessing whether the school district provided the child with a free appropriate public education as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The Court [...]
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services announced recently that it is temporarily suspending premium processing for all H-1B petitions starting on April 3. This means that petitioners will not be able to file Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service for a Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker that requests H-1B status. Per USCIS, the suspension could last up [...]
It’s H-1B season, and as a reminder, the H-1B visa is for professional workers coming to work in specialty occupations. Congress only allocates 65,000 visas per year and an additional 20,000 for individuals with an advanced degree from a United States university who have not previously been counted against the cap. The H-1B is often the visa of choice for companies [...]
On Nov. 22, 2016, a federal court issued a preliminary injunction that blocks (for now) the implementation of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Final Overtime Rule, which would have gone into effect on December 1 and would have increased the minimum salary threshold necessary to qualify for exemption from the Fair Labor Standards Act under the so-called “white collar” or [...]
Despite your political party or how you voted on or prior to Nov. 8, 2016, the results of the 2016 election will undoubtedly impact the future of health care for the next several years in and outside of Colorado. Just how is still to be determined, but here’s a glimpse of what you might be able to expect: The Patient [...]
Dear Colleagues, I wanted to share an article that one of our respected attorneys wrote that I think you will find of interest. Meghan Pound, experienced health care attorney with Caplan and Earnest, recently published this insightful article on the Yates Memorandum for Fraud and Abuse, a publication of the American Health Lawyers Association Fraud and Abuse Practice Group. Meghan [...]