Health Law Advisor

There is little question that youth e-cigarette use has been on the rise. In 2018, an estimated 3.6 million kids reported “current use” of e-cigarettes (defined as use on at least one day in the past 30 days), up from just 220,000 kids reporting such use in 2011 (See National Youth Tobacco Survey findings). Although youth e-cigarette use raises public health concerns, there’s also a public health upside to e-cigarettes, as they have been shown to be an effective tool in helping current adult cigarette smokers kick the habit and are a safer option for current smokers than ...

The Physician Payment Sunshine Act, which was incorporated into Section 6002 of the Affordable Care Act, requires pharmaceutical, medical device, biological and medical supply manufacturers to file annual reports on payments to physicians and teaching hospitals. Despite the requirement in the law that manufacturers submit their first report in March 2013 disclosing payments made during 2012, two events have pushed back that obligation or taken the sting out of noncompliance.

First, although Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) was required to publish standards for ...