The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced on March 31, 2020 that certain patent and trademark filing and payment deadlines have been extended in response to delays caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

In these unforeseen and unique circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to keep our clients abreast of how patent and trademark offices around the world are handling deadlines and other issues.

The wide-reaching CARES Act provides significant additional support to the health care industry inundated by the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily in the forms of new funding and regulatory relief.

The Vorys real property tax team is monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on property tax filings and deadlines. 

HZNP Medicines LLC et al. v. Actavis Laboratories UT, Inc., No. 2017-2149 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 25, 2020) (“HZNP”) is a cautionary tale on the use of the claim term “consisting essentially of.”  On October 10, 2019, a Federal Circuit panel affirmed the district court’s holding that the term “consisting essentially of” was indefinite because the patent at issue had disclosed inconsistent results to a novel property of the invention thereby rendering that novel property indefinite.

Emergency rules, issued early this afternoon by the Ohio Department of Medicaid, expand and enhance access to telehealth services. 

In response to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government and states have reviewed requirements affecting the ability of health care providers to use and receive reimbursement for the provision of services via telemedicine.

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) expands coverage for and reimbursement of coronavirus testing and related services by state and federal health care programs, private insurers, and self-insured group health plans. 

Today, March 19, 2020, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced he will be issuing an executive order authorizing the Department of Medicaid (ODM) to promulgate emergency rules which will expand access to telehealth. 

As COVID-19 spreads throughout the United States, health care providers are on the front lines of this growing crisis, and regulators at both the state and federal levels are releasing new and updated guidance to help them respond to this rapidly-changing industry environment.

This article outlines states/jurisdictions with upcoming real property tax appeal deadlines.

On December 2, 2019, the Vorys health care team received confirmation from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) that it plans to adopt our proposed interpretation of new federal standards for the management of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals, effectively exempting Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IIDs) from compliance with the new standards.

On October 31, 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published in the Federal Register an interim final rule which – as required by last December’s Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 (popularly known as the “2018 Farm Bill”)

On September 10, 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published a final rule with comment period establishing new requirements for Medicare- and Medicaid providers to disclose “affiliations” with other providers and suppliers.

On July 30, 2019, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed a new law legalizing and regulating “hemp,” defined as cannabis and derivatives thereof with no more than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) concentration on a dry weight basis.

Taxpayers seeking to contest the values established by the local assessor have a short time-to contest their new valuation. This time frame varies by state and by local jurisdiction and in many cases begins to run upon mailing of a new value notice.