Media Mentions
2011
“Early EMR Adopters Get a Break; Tougher Criteria Delayed to 2014”
American Medical News, December 12, 2011
Stephen Bernstein said the “main message” of a government announcement giving physicians who earn 2011 federal electronic medical record incentives more time to meet tougher standards for additional bonuses “is that there are federal government programs out there to help physicians, and the federal government isn’t going to stop offering help.” Mr. Bernstein said this is particularly relevant for physicians who are undecided about making a significant investment in electronic recordkeeping but who want to participate in new Medicare payment models.
“AstraZeneca GC Joins McDermott’s Life Sciences Group”
Law360, September 27, 2011
Glenn Engelmann, former general counsel at AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, joined the Life Sciences practice in McDermott’s Washington office. Mr. Engelmann said he was “drawn to McDermott’s multidisciplinary and coordinated approach to life sciences.” His experience handling regulatory investigations and patent litigation was praised by Stephen Bernstein, who said that Englemann knows “firsthand the concerns and motivations that drive our clients.” Also joining the Washington Life Sciences practice was associate Susan Lee, who will focus on regulatory compliance and public policy matters.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Glenn Engelmann, Susan S. Lee, Health, Life Sciences & Medical Products
“Avoid These HIPAA Land Mines Involving Your Practitioners’ Cell Phones”
Part B Insider, September 2011
Stephen Bernstein warned that, although texting patient health information is not technically illegal under HIPAA, it may be prohibited by more protective state laws. “From a HIPAA security standpoint, it’s better not to send emails and texts” with such information, Mr. Bernstein said, “but between the two, emails are safer than texts and, when possible, emails should be encrypted.”
“OCR Fines Medical Group $4.3M, Reaches Settlement in Record Enforcement Actions”
Report on Patient Privacy, March 2011
Stephen Bernstein said the HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) HIPAA violation fine against a Maryland medical group that refused to release patient records or to comply with OCR’s investigation “is mostly about the failure to cooperate with the government, which has been quite team-oriented” in HIPPA inquiries until now. Mr. Bernstein called the medical group’s actions “over the top on failure,” and said the lessons for companies in similar situations are to “forge ahead and implement your policies and procedures, and build internal teams that can be responsive to accidents and exposures. Have a team ready to go, and cooperate with OCR.”
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Health Care Law Reform, Health Information Privacy, HIPAA
“HIPAA Fine is a First”
Modern Healthcare, February 28, 2011
Stephen Bernstein said of an HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) fine against a Maryland company for violating patients’ HIPAA rights by denying them access to their medical records, and failing to cooperate with an OCR investigation of the matter: “I don’t know of a situation where parties [like the company] haven’t cooperated. And my guess is that’s what upset OCR.” He urged healthcare organizations to have privacy compliance policies in place, “so when OCR calls, you’re in a position to have a conversation that is cooperative, open and upfront.”
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Health Care Law Reform, Health Information Privacy, HIPAA
2010
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in a July 23 Boston Business Journal article on the new federal guidelines for use of electronic medical records. Mr. Bernstein said that greater demand by health care providers means that companies that offer services to facilitate use of these records “are likely to become acquisition targets, or to do acquisitions themselves.” He added that there will also be business opportunities for “vendors who can come in midyear and analyze for providers how they are progressing toward compliance” with the guidelines.
Stephen Bernstein told The National Law Journal (June 21) that the new health reform law is spurring an increase in mergers and acquisitions among health care providers looking to increase capacity to care for the larger number of insured persons. Citing a 10 percent to 20 percent boost in health sector merger activity since the law’s passage, Mr. Bernstein said of the increase: “The [reform] bill supercharged it.”
McDermott’s selection to receive the first national level award for health law practice from Chambers was covered in JD Journal (June 11). Chambers called the Firm “a gigantic presence in the world of U.S. healthcare, advising a range of industry heavyweights on the most complex issues. McDermott’s Health Industry Advisory Practice Group was also the only one to receive a Tier 1 ranking in the first-ever Chambers national health law rankings.
2009
Stephen Bernstein's article, "Appeals Court Ruling Severely Undermines Speech Rights" was republished in March 2009 in the American Health Lawyers Association Practice Groups Member Briefing.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Life Sciences - Health
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the February 10 issue of Health Law360 in an authored article discussing IMS Health Inc. v. Ayotte.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Life Sciences & Medical Products, Life Sciences - Health
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the January 29 issue of FDA Webview in an article regarding a New Hampshire law that violates the Firm Amendment because it prohibits the transfer of prescriber-identifiable information for use by drug companies field representations. "If the transfer of the information was the target of the conduct restraint, then, at a minimum, all the information transfers for all commercial uses would have been forbidden, instead of just those having to do with the ensuing commercial use in influencing physician behavior," Mr. Bernstein said.
2008
Stephen W. Bernstein was quoted in the February 2008 issue of Briefings on HIPAA in an article regarding healthcare organizations facing the prospect of preemptive, third-party compliance evaluations because PricewaterhouseCoopers has contracted with CMS to conduct security audits of covered entities. "Because the scrutiny rule's implementation specifications are generally more technical and more apparently to employees than the privacy requirements, expect more feedback about security policies and procedures from staff members than from patients," Mr. Bernstein said.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen W. Bernstein and Jennifer S. Geetter were quoted in the February 1 issue of Mass High Tech in an article regarding the state of Massachusetts funding stem cell research. "States see it as a hot new thing, and that's debatable. But in Massachusetts we have all the raw expertise and can use legislation to springboard what's already here," Mr. Bernstein said. "State programs can clarify legal aspects. It's an opportunity for states to clear up any state regulations which may impede stem cell research. State privacy laws are a patchwork, and you can get tangled in ways the legislation didn't intend," Ms. Geetter said.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Jennifer S. Geetter, Health, Life Sciences & Medical Products, Life Sciences - Health
2007
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the April 30 issue of The National Law Journal on law firms' involvement in the BIO conference in Boston. Mr. Bernstein mentioned the Firm's involvement in the conference as chairs of panel discussions, "We have gone for the substance of what the conference is about," and he also mentioned the Firm's evening reception.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Life Sciences & Medical Products
Stephen Bernstein was mentioned in the April 13 edition of Government Health IT on American Health Information Community's apparent considering of applying HIPAA to Regional Health Information Organizations and questioning the appropriateness of such an extension. "It might be difficult to determine which portions of the HIPAA rules apply, given the variations among exchange organizations," Mr. Bernstein said.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Government Strategies, Health, HIPAA
McDermott was mentioned on page one of the Sunday, February 25 Boston Globe in regard to assisting pro bono client Bedside Advocates. Toby Kusmer, Stephen Bernstein and Kaley Klanica comprise our pro bono team.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Toby H. Kusmer PC, Pro Bono & Community Service
2006
Stephen Bernstein was quoted by the Boston Business Journal on December 4 in an article regarding the growth of Boston's top five venture capital-backed pharmaceutical start-up companies. "In Massachusetts, part of the reason this sector is hot is that there is good clustering of companies, academia and capital," Mr. Bernstein said. "The markets are doing quite well and there's a lot of capital chasing a number of companies positioned in that three-to-five-year window when return is expected."
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, Life Sciences & Medical Products
Stephen Bernstein and Bernadette Broccolo were quoted in the August 24 issue of BNA's Health Law Reporter. Ms. Broccolo commented, "I'm not sure the government entirely realizes how big a task it's taken on for itself, but I do applaud the meaningful progress these regulations represent." Mr. Bernstein described the hurdles to implementing the 15 percent cost-sharing provision in the electronic health records exception. "There may be things hospital donors want to pay for and there may be things that they don't. There also may be things they are precluded from paying for that are still rolled into the package," he said.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Bernadette M. Broccolo, Health
2003
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the Wall Street Journal on April 24 in an article addressing how HIPAA may be getting in the way of health care. Mr. Bernstein commented that many doctors don't realize that HIPAA actually provides "a fair degree of flexibility to share health information with the patient, share it with other providers for treatment, share it with health plans for payment, and share it with other parties subject to certain agreements."
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in The Wall Street Journal on April 24 in an article addressing how HIPAA may be getting in the way of health care. Mr. Bernstein commented that many doctors don't realize that HIPAA actually provides "a fair degree of flexibility to share health information with the patient, share it with other providers for treatment, share it with health plans for payment, and share it with other parties subject to certain agreements."
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the April 14 issue of Lawyers Weekly USA regarding how lawyers must change their ways to conform with HIPAA. One issue lawyers have to deal with is the process by which medical records are obtained and shared. Mr. Bernstein commented that depending on the jurisdiction, state privacy laws could afford the patient more or less access to records than HIPAA does, which could partially preempt the federal regulations, and attorneys need to be comfortable with the interplay. "HIPAA creates a floor - a minimum level of privacy," he mentioned.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the April 1 issue of The Washington Post in an article addressing the use of e-mail by doctors. The article reported on the increased usage of e-mail as a communication tool for doctors and their patients, and it described some of the pros and cons of this new method of communication, including privacy issues. Mr. Bernstein commented on how HIPAA compliance will call for the need of doctors to ask for patients' authorization before sending e-mail.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the April 1 issue of The Washington Post in an article addressing the use of e-mail by doctors. The article reported on the increased usage of e-mail as a communication tool for doctors and their patients, and it described some of the pros and cons of this new method of communication, including privacy issues. Mr. Bernstein commented on how HIPAA compliance will call for the need of doctors to ask for patients' authorization before sending e-mail.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the February 2003 issue of PharmaVOICE, in an article entitled "Piecing Together the Privacy Puzzle," regarding the effect of HIPAA on the pharmaceutical industry.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
2002
Stephen Bernstein was interviewed regarding medical privacy on Here & Now, a National Public Radio program that aired on July 3. In the interview, which addressed HIPAA, Mr. Bernstein commented that the new HIPAA regulations are intended to and should help foster a more complete dialogue between patients and their health care providers about how health information is received, used and re-disclosed, and establish a baseline for consumer expectations regarding the privacy of their medical information.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the May 7 issue of InfoWorld Daily News in regard to how biotechnology companies are preparing for the HIPAA deadline. According to Mr. Bernstein HIPAA has not been a top priority. "For the most part, biotechnology companies are not covered entities, but there area number of hidden traps and pitfalls, where some companies may be covered entities or hybrids," he commented.
Stephen W. Bernstein, Health, HIPAA, Life Sciences & Medical Products
Stephen Bernstein was quoted in the May 2002 issue of Health Information Compliance Alert regarding the impact of HIPAA on clinical labs and temporary employees.
