Lanton Law Blog

Learn about the latest trends and activities through our blog posts.

CMS is Proposing to Delay the Radiation Oncology (RO) Model

Last week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced its proposal to delay the start of the Radiation Oncology Model. The announcement can be found here. No reason was given but the proposed reimbursement structure was undoubtedly the major reason behind this delay.

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U.S. Houses Passes the MORE Act Helping Cannabis Stakeholders

The U.S. House has passed the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act otherwise known as the MORE Act. The proposed bill removes marijuana from the list of scheduled substances under the Controlled Substances Act and eliminates criminal penalties for an individual who manufactures, distributes, or possesses marijuana.

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What to Know about CURES 2.0

In November 2021, U.S. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and Diana DeGette (D-CO) today introduced their bipartisan Cures 2.0 legislation. The bill which is aimed at helping patients of innovative companies within healthcare and life sciences can be viewed here.

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FDA Proposes Rule Impacting Wholesale Drug Distributors & 3rd Party Logistics Providers

According to the Food and Drug Administration proposed rule, the (FDA) is “proposing national standards for the licensing of prescription drug wholesale distributors (“wholesale distributors” or “wholesale drug distributors”) and third-party logistics providers (“3PLs”), as directed under the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) (Title II of the Drug Quality and Security Act). Pursuant to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act), as amended by the DSCSA, the proposed rule would establish standards for all State and Federal licenses issued.”

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Prescription Digital Therapeutics Presses Ahead for Behavioral Health

At Lanton Law we have been monitoring the both exciting and emerging field of prescription digital therapeutics. While the technologies we have been witnessing are promising, there does remain the challenge of reimbursement, since there has not yet been a statutory benefit category established for this new technology. However; behavioral health shows the most immediate promise.

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President Biden Signs the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 Impacting Telehealth and Health System Stakeholders

On March 15, 2022 President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 into law. The announcement can be viewed here. This $1.5 trillion omnibus appropriations bill is important as there are several provisions applicable to hospitals and health systems contained within; namely touching on issues such as 340B eligibility and telehealth.

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Massachusetts Discussing Data Privacy Protection

Senator Creem and Senator Lesser have introduced S.46 titled “An Act Establishing the Massachusetts Information Privacy Act.” The bill can be found here.

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Cancer Moonshot Initiative Returns

In 2017 we wrote an article that previewed the Cancer Moonshot Initiative (CMI). It was a widespread belief that with Joe Biden becoming President that the CMI would return in some capacity. Today, the White House issued a Fact Sheet that has reginited this policy effort.

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CMS Ends Most Favored Nation Drug Price Model Proposal

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency has published a final rule in the Federal Register on December 27, 2021, that rescinds the November 27, 2020, MFN Model interim final rule with comment period.​​ The final rule rescinding the Most Favored Nation Model interim final rule with comment period can be found here.

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Senator Wyden Requests FTC To Investigate Retail Pharmacy Market Consolidation

In a recent press release Senator Wyden (D-OR) has sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to according to “investigate recent consolidations in Oregon’s retail pharmacy market to assess whether large national pharmacy chains and health plans have acted to make this market less competitive.”

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House Committee on Oversight and and Reform Releases Report on Drug Pricing

Last week Representative Maloney (D-NY) who is the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform released the final staff report, resulting from a multi-year investigation into drug pricing. The Committee investigation was originally started by the late Representative Cummings.

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The Platform Accountability and Transparency Act (PATA) Introduced to Ensure Social Media Platform Transparency

Senators Coons (D-DE), Kloubuchar (D-MN) and Portman (R-OH) have introduced a bi-partisan proposed bill that would require social media companies to provide vetted, independent researchers and the public with access to certain platform data.

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New Congressional CBD Bill Introduced to Give Policy Clarity for CBD Products

Congress has introduced the CBD Product Safety and Standardization Act “that will establish federal standards for CBD food and beverage products to protect consumers and provide marketplace stability for farmers, producers, and retailers.”

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Congressional Cannabis Caucus Advocates for Medical Marijuana Access to Veterans

On December 1, 2021 the Congressional Cannabis Caucus composed a letter to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs regarding the Caucus’ advocacy for medical marijuana access for veterans.

The letter stated “As bipartisan Co-Chairs of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, we are pleased to learn the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is considering a change in policy to allow for access to medical cannabis for VA patients. We implore your agency to act swiftly and implement this change as soon as possible.”

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