BY Phuong D. Nguyen, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   In response to the recently adopted Doctor Act, the Texas Medical Board adopted new regulations designed to address physician shortages in Texas. The new Act and the new rules are aimed at providing new pathways to licensing foreign trained physicians and medical school graduates who do not match into a resident training program. Before digging into the statute and rules,...

BY Amanda F. Hobbs, Esq. and Michael Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   October 1, 2025, kicked off the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, lasting 43 days total. Come January 30, 2026, we may be in for an even longer standoff should no bipartisan agreement come to fruition. So, what had lawmakers so riled up? And why might it happen again so soon?   To answer this question, we have to look at...

BY Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C. The passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) marks one of the most sweeping changes to U.S. healthcare policy in decades. Signed into law on July 4, 2025, the bill introduces over $1 trillion in cuts to federal healthcare programs, reshaping Medicaid, Medicare, and ACA Marketplace coverage. Proponents of the law argue it is aimed at reducing waste and improving efficiency. But some of...

BY Blinn E. Combs, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   On June 17, 2025, a little over two months after initiating large-scale layoffs at the agency, the federal Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) announced a new Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher (“CNPV”) program. The CNPV aimed to give voucher recipients the opportunity to shorten new drug approval timelines from 10-12 months down to 1-2 months. The program aims to address four...

BY Phuong D. Nguyen, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published a Final Rule amending the standards for an “identified overpayment.” As a recap, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (the “Affordable Care Act”) requires that an overpayment be reported and returned by the later of 60 days after the date the overpayment was identified or...

BY Kianna L. Sitarski, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   Many recent additions to the healthcare regulatory framework have largely been aimed at adding much needed transparency for patients. One such addition with this objective is the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, colloquially known as the “Sunshine Act” or “Open Payments Act”, which seeks to require certain industry players to disclose certain financial interactions and relationships with physicians and other Covered...

BY Matthew D. Earl, Esq. and Michael Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   On July 1, 2025, CMS announced updates to the procedures to initiate the Independent Dispute Resolution (“IDR”) process available under the No Surprises Act (“NSA”). The IDR process provides an independent and binding arbitration to decide reimbursement disputes between providers and health plans for specified services. The updates are part of an ongoing effort to refine and improve the IDR process...

BY Phuong Nguyen, Esq. and Michael Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   Earlier this year, we wrote about the information blocking provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act (the “Cures Act”) and concerns related to the requirement to disclose medical information, particularly lab results. A new Texas law was passed that appears to largely address those concerns by requiring a 3-day delay for sensitive lab results. To recap, the Cures Act was passed in...

BY Kianna L. Sitarski, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   The healthcare industry is indisputably rife with economic, administrative, and regulatory hurdles that often have the unintended consequence of limiting healthcare access to patients, especially those in rural communities. Effective September 1, 2019, in recognition of one regulatory hurdle faced by hospitals, namely federal and state antitrust laws, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill (H.B. 3301) implementing a limited grant of...

BY Bradley Byars, J.D., M.H.A., LL.M. and Michael R. Alexander, J.D., Brown & Fortunato, P.C.   A patient checks her phone on a chilly January morning for lab results. She notices a note labeled: “This communication was generated by an artificial intelligence tool. She wonders: “Who, or what, is advising me?” This reaction captures a microcosm of the modern healthcare experience—where advanced algorithms increasingly shape patient interactions, while policymakers race to ensure these tools serve...