Legal, Regulatory, & Licensing

Issues

Sub-Issues

About Legal, Regulatory, & Licensing

CHA’s legal department works on behalf of member hospitals and health systems in a variety of ways:

  • Advocating before the courts both as a party in litigation and as amicus curiae in important appellate cases
  • Assisting hospital compliance officers, privacy officers, and other staff with compliance with the myriad federal and state laws that govern hospital administration and the delivery of health care. This includes CHA’s California Health Information Privacy Manual, a California-specific resource that compares privacy requirements under HIPAA to state laws, and the California Hospital Compliance Manual, which covers high-risk compliance issues.
  • Representing the interests of California hospitals before state and federal courts in lawsuits involving MICRA, reimbursement, labor and employment, medical staff, and other issues
  • Assistance with medical staff bylaws
  • Expertise in mental health law

This section also includes information about the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) Licensing and Certification Division, which is responsible for the licensure, regulation, inspection, and certification of health care facilities and certain health care professionals in California.

Registration Open for CHA Webinar on Preparing for Potential COVID-19 Litigation

Experts predict it isn’t a matter of if California hospitals will experience professional liability and employment claims related to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a matter of when. To provide strategies for potential litigation that might be coming hospitals’ way, CHA will host a webinar on COVID-19: Preparing for Potential Litigation on April 20 from 10:30 […]

CMS Resumes Hospital Survey Activities

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced it will immediately resume hospital survey activities for all complaints. Previously, CMS was operating under guidance — which expired March 22 — limiting surveys to Immediate Jeopardy (IJ) complaints. Effective March 23, survey activity resumed in accordance with non-long-term care guidance issued on August 17. In the updated guidance, CMS details the following: 

April 1 PPE Stockpile Deadline Is Here

Today marks the day that hospitals are required to have a personal protective equipment (PPE) stockpile per Labor Code 6403.3. The law is clear that the stockpile must consist of seven identified items of PPE in amounts equal to three months of normal consumption. Among other questions, the definition of normal consumption remains unresolved. While […]

CHA Submits Pre-Regulatory Comments on No Surprises Act

CHA has submitted comments to the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury related to the implementation of the No Surprises Act.   The legislation limits patient out-of-pocket costs to the in-network amount for emergency medical care provided by out-of-network facilities and providers and in certain situations where care is delivered at an in-network facility by an out-of-network provider.  

CHA Issues Summary of No Surprises Act Surprise Billing Legislation

CHA has issued a summary of the No Surprises Act, which was signed into law on Dec. 27, 2020, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. The No Surprises Act addresses surprise medical billing at the federal level, with most sections of the legislation effective Jan. 1, 2022. The Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Labor will issue regulations and guidance to implement numerous provisions.  

FAQs Help Hospitals Prepare for Jan. 15 PPE Reporting Deadline

As reported previously, California’s general acute care hospital personal protective equipment (PPE) stockpile law – Assembly Bill (AB) 2537 – requires hospitals to be prepared to report specified PPE data as of Jan. 15. CHA developed and has updated frequently asked questions to assist hospitals with implementation.