The Health Law Ticker

In a shift from prior policy, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) proposed on February 22, 2022, new guidelines for prescribing opioid painkillers. The new guidance largely avoids figures on dosage strength and length of prescription and warns against abruptly or rapidly discontinuing pain pills for chronic pain patients. It directs physicians to individualize the process and use their best judgement in determining whether to prescribe opioids, and when they do, to start with the lowest effective dosage. The proposed guidelines encourage physicians to weigh ...

On April 21, 2020, the United States Senate passed the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (the Act). The House is expected to pass the Act and send it to the President on April 23, 2020. Broadly speaking, the Act amends the CARES Act to provide additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program, hospitals and providers, and includes funding for coronavirus testing.

The Act provides an additional $75 billion on top of the $100 billion appropriated in the CARES Act for the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund of the Department of Health and Human ...

Recently, the Medical Board of California circulated an open letter, known as a Prescriber Guidance Letter to all practitioners in California who prescribe opiates.  The letter was authored by a statewide workgroup on Prescription Opioid Misuse and Overdose Prevention.  The workgroup includes the Medical Board of California, the Board of Pharmacy, the California Department of Public Health, the DEA, DMV, California Department of Justice, California Health and Human Services, California Society of Addition Medicine, and California Healthcare Foundation, among others.

The ...