Mary M. McCudden

Subscribe to Mary M. McCudden's Posts
Contact:Read more about Mary M. McCudden

As employers in healthcare settings prepare to administer the vaccine to healthcare personnel, they are likely grappling with new practical considerations.  Undoubtedly, one of the most widespread challenges is how to manage employees with potential post-vaccination systemic signs and symptoms (“signs and symptoms”), without unnecessarily imposing work restrictions to the detriment of patient care demands. …

Surging COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 vaccination considerations and post-election impacts are just a few of the many evolving issues facing healthcare employers as we head into the end of 2020. If you missed our recent Healthcare Industry Key Trends webinar, please consider watching as our Jackson Lewis colleagues touch on many of these issues and…

Two federal courts have struck down the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) “Conscience Protection Rule,” which was slated to go into effect on November 22, 2019. The Rule purported to enforce pre-existing “conscience laws” that protect the rights of certain employees of healthcare institutions that receive federal funds to refuse to participate

…

During a recent webinar, our Healthcare team provided practical case studies with clear takeaways and best practices for reasonably accommodating employees’ sincerely-held religious beliefs without compromising patient safety. You can watch the webinar recording at your convenience. Additionally, the team compiled a list of frequently asked questions about Title VII of the Civil Rights Act …

Healthcare facilities in California have been required to adhere to mandatory nurse-to-patient ratios since 2004. These ratios vary depending upon the degree of patient care involved. More recently, Massachusetts passed a law requiring mandatory staffing minimums in the state’s ICU’s. Other states are considering jumping on the bandwagon. A California-like bill is currently pending in…

Title IV of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (HCQIA), created the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB). The NPDB is a national clearinghouse and repository of information on medical malpractice payments and adverse actions taken against licensed healthcare providers. Hospitals and health systems with formal peer review are among the entities required to…

Disruptive physicians are staple characters on television shows about the medical field. Some of the most recent T.V. doctors of this vein that come to mind are Dr. Gregory House of House and Dr. Perry Cox of Scrubs. While Dr. House and Dr. Cox present entertaining caricatures of disruptive physician behavior (“DPB”), in “real life”…

Rheumatologist Ephraim Engleman practiced medicine until he died at age 104 in 2015. Although Dr. Engleman’s story is atypical, as our colleagues who attended the American Health Lawyers Association’s 2018 Physicians and Hospitals Law Institute reported, and the Association of American Medicine Medical College’s November 2017 State Physician Workforce Data Report confirms, an increasing number…