The results of the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown (the “Takedown”) were announced on June 23, 2026; the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) charged 455 individuals in connection with alleged health care fraud schemes involving over $6.5 billion in false claims. Ninety of the charged individuals were physicians or other medical professionals.

The Takedown, dating back to 2007, is conducted annually by DOJ, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”), the Federal Bureau…
Continue Reading DOJ’s Continued Focus on Medicare and Medicaid Fraud Produces $6.5 Billion Health Care Fraud Takedown

Earlier this year, Congress enacted Section 6225 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (“CAA”), establishing a new Medicare condition of payment for off-campus hospital outpatient departments beginning January 1, 2028. As discussed in our prior alerts (here and here), the statute generally prohibits Medicare payment for services furnished by an off-campus hospital outpatient department unless the department bills under a separate National Provider Identifier (“NPI”) assigned to that off-campus department, the hospital submits an initial provider-based attestation…
Continue Reading Mandatory Provider-Based Attestations Are Taking Shape: CMS Releases Proposed Implementation Framework

By Nick Hierlmeier

This weekend was the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. You may not have known that unless you read Erin’s blog post from last week. 😉

While we took last week and this past weekend to celebrate our country, let’s take this week to celebrate our state.

Before we start, I’ll answer a few questions that I know will come up:

  • Yes, I know Wisconsin’s anniversary was two months ago.
  • No, OG+S isn’t 

…
Continue Reading A Non-Controversial Blog About Wisconsin

July 7, 2026 – A 2023 civil commitment order had sufficient evidence to support it beyond the alleged hearsay, and collateral consequences made the issue suitable for resolution, a 5-2 majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided in Waukesha County v. R.D.T., 2026 WI 24.

“We hold that Ryden’s appeal is not moot,” wrote Justice Rebecca Frank Dallet for the majority. “We further conclude that the order should not be vacated because, even if the circuit court erred,…
Continue Reading Supreme Court: Recommitment Hearing Hearsay Only Harmless Error

July 7, 2026 – The lack of an examiner’s required written report no later than 48 hours before the final involuntary civil commitment hearing “did not deprive the circuit court of competency to proceed,” a unanimous Wisconsin Supreme Court held in

Outagamie County v. M.J.B., 2026 WI 23. “Although this time limit protects important interests,” wrote Justice Susan M. Crawford, “nothing in the statutory scheme suggests that the legislature intended that failing to make the examiners’ reports accessible…
Continue Reading Supreme Court: 48-Hour Rule Didn’t Affect Circuit Court Competency

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July 7, 2026 – Tribal sovereign immunity defeated a claim to bind real estate covenants to the Menominee Indian Tribe and its representative, a 4-3 Wisconsin Supreme Court majority held in Legend Lake Property Owners Association, Inc. v. Keshena, 2026 WI 21.

“We conclude that nothing abrogates, waives, or otherwise precludes the Tribe’s sovereign immunity in this case,” wrote Justice Susan M. Crawford for the majority. “Accordingly, we affirm the circuit court’s judgment of dismissal.”

Chief Justice…
Continue Reading Wisconsin Supreme Court: Sovereign Immunity Stops Covenant Enforcement

New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act (“MAID Act”), introduced in the New York Senate in January 2025 and amended, in part, by the State Assembly in February 2026, will take effect on August 5, 2026, creating a new statutory pathway for qualifying terminally ill adults to request and self-administer medication to end their lives. The MAID Act is part of a broader national trend toward laws commonly referred to as “death with dignity” or “physician-assisted dying” laws.
Continue Reading Preparing for New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act: Compliance Considerations for a Growing State-Law Trend

The State of Louisiana has amended its athlete agent law, bringing sweeping changes to the state’s legislation regulating athlete representatives. Particularly noteworthy, the legislation broadens the coverage of the state’s athlete agent law to include individuals acting as name, image, and likeness (NIL) agents for high school and college athletes.
The Old Louisiana Athlete Agent Law
Previously, the Louisiana law was limited to individuals negotiating employment contracts on behalf of an athlete with a professional sports team. This…
Continue Reading Louisiana Has Amended its Athlete Agent Law, Reflecting the NIL Era

On Monday, June 22, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) announced Operation TrialBlazer, a coordinated department-wide initiative aimed at promoting clinical research leadership and engagement in the United States. The initiative emphasizes the growth of early-stage clinical research overseas, with HHS acknowledging the threat to “America’s position as a global leader.” See Operation TrialBlazer, HHS Roadmap to Maintaining U.S. Leadership in Early Clinical Research and Development, Executive Summary p. 2-3.

HHS indicated that Operation TrialBlazer…
Continue Reading HHS’s Operation TrialBlazer

As we head into the July 4th weekend, many of you are undoubtedly aware that this year marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Something that’s not widely known is that the first printed version to make the signers’ names public was printed by a woman, Mary Katharine Goddard.
When the Declaration was adopted on July 4, 1776, the identities of the signers were kept secret. Naming them publicly would have exposed them to charges of…
Continue Reading Celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the Woman Who Printed It

Buried in the July 1, 2026, proposed rule for the Home Health Prospective Payment System (“Proposed Rule”), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) proposed changes to provider enrollment and a provider’s ability to obtain and maintain Medicare billing privileges. Notably, the changes to provider enrollment regulations at 42 CFR Part 424, Subpart P affect every Medicare-enrolled provider and supplier.
Revocation and Denial Updates Applicable to All Medicare Providers and Suppliers
CMS is proposing several provider enrollment provisions…
Continue Reading CMS Proposes Significant Changes Impacting Provider Enrollment Including Provider/Supplier Billing Privileges

Following a series of hospital sale-leaseback transactions that preceded bankruptcy filings in 2024 and 2025, lawmakers at both the federal and state levels have taken notice. In response, legislators have introduced measures aimed at regulating, or increasing oversight of, certain health care real estate transactions.

These efforts seek to protect community hospitals from transactions that may weaken their finances, shift disproportionate value to private-sector investors or jeopardize access to essential services by saddling providers with long-term lease obligations.

As…
Continue Reading Weekly Hospital Real Estate Briefing: A Flurry of Legislation Restricting Hospital Real Estate Transactions – What You Need to Know

When people think about IP, they often envision tech companies, software developers, and research and development labs—not construction companies. In reality, most companies, including those in construction, manage far more IP than they may realize. From brand identity to proprietary building methods, these assets can be as valuable as cranes, trucks, or tools, and, like any asset, they need protection.

Below are key areas where construction companies should take a closer look at how they manage and protect their…
Continue Reading Why Construction Companies Must Protect Their Intellectual Property Now

​”Evers’ judges” is our effort to present information about Gov. Tony Evers’ appointees to the bench. The information is taken from the appointees’ own judgeship applications.

Italics indicate direct quotes from the application.​ Typos, including punctuation errors, come from the original application even though we have not inserted “(sic)” after each one. WJI has left them as is.
Name: Whitney A. Healy

Appointed to: Outagamie County Circuit Court

Appointment date: Nov. 7, 2025, to term ending July 31, 2027…
Continue Reading Evers’ Judges: Whitney A. Healy

Many grandparents play an important role in their grandchildren’ s lives. However, Wisconsin law does not automatically grant grandparents the legal right to spend time with their grandchildren, also known as visitation rights. In most cases, courts presume that fit parents are able to determine who can spend time with their children.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court case, Michels v. Lyons, found that a grandparent who wishes to have visitation rights to a grandchild in opposition to a fit…
Continue Reading Do Grandparents Have The Right To Visitation In Wisconsin?

In two recent civil antitrust complaints, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) alleged that hospital systems used payer contracting provisions—so‑called steering restrictions that require hospitals to be included in nearly all of an insurer’s commercial networks at the most favored level of benefits—to restrict health insurers’ ability to offer narrow network plans, tiered network plans or other insurance plans that give its members financial incentives to use specific network providers. DOJ brought these actions under…
Continue Reading OhioHealth Settlement Signals Growing Antitrust Risk in Managed Care Contracting