ABA Health Law Section

09/01/2026

📣 Calling all new HLS Member or those who want to get more involved!

Join Courtney Hurtig, Denise Glass and David Ellenbogen on September 16 for our quarterly New Member Orientation Webinar.

Register Now: https://www.americanbar.org/events-cle/mtg/web/458962042/

09/01/2026

Owners of medspas—medical clinic/day spa hybrids that offer minimally invasive cosmetic procedures in a spa-like setting—often believe that they exist in a regulatory gray area. However, recent DOJ actions against some medspa owners for fraud; violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act; and other compliance failures demonstrate that the medspa regulatory landscape is stricter than some have believed. In this ABA Health eSource article, Darshan Kulkarni details some of the most common noncompliance areas and how medspa owners and their counsel can protect themselves.

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Owners of medspas—medical clinic/day spa hybrids that offer minimally invasive cosmetic procedures in a spa-like setting—are often fooled by their own relaxed, retail-friendly atmosphere and often believe that they exist in a regulatory gray area.

08/07/2026

Last weekend, the chairs of our Committees and Interest Groups met at the Holland & Knight LLP office in Chicago to plan for our 2026-2027 bar year and officially pass the gavel. Thank you Lisa D. Taylor for an amazing year. We are so excited for our new Chair, David Ellenbogen, and this great group of leaders to hit the ground running on the year to come!

08/06/2026

For high-risk therapeutics with reasonably knowable safety liabilities, litigation following serious adverse events often turns on a simple question: Did the sponsor act reasonably before the foreseeable harm occurred? Using ibogaine’s cardiac risk profile as the case study, this article by Kimberly Chew from Husch Blackwell and Odette Hauke demonstrates how trials can be designed that are more likely to be viewed as reasonable exercises of the duty of care owed to research participants.

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For high-risk therapeutics with reasonably knowable safety liabilities, litigation following serious adverse events often turns on a simple question: Did the sponsor act reasonably before the foreseeable harm occurred?

08/06/2026

We are now accepting proposals for the 2027 Emerging Issues in Healthcare Law Conference (EMI) taking place March 31-April 3 in Tucson, AZ!

As the name suggests, EMI is focused on emerging issues in healthcare law. We welcome submissions on the new or evolving trends, ideas, and issues you see affecting the legal healthcare and business environment to be presented at an intermediate or advanced health attorney level. The EMI Planning Committee is open to all emerging topic proposals.

The deadline to complete and submit the Program Proposal Form is Friday, September 4, 2026. We can't wait to hear from you!

Learn More: https://americanbar.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b7XoUD6IMobJQ6q

08/04/2026

As the Medicare Advantage program grows, so does the federal government’s scrutiny of MAOs and downstream providers alike. Given recent regulatory and market developments, as well as the increasing availability and use of AI across the MA program, effective and proactive compliance safeguards for stakeholders can significantly limit long-term financial and operational risks. This ABA Health eSource article, by Devin Cohen, Matthew J. Westbrook, and Catherine Pellerin from Proskauer Rose LLP, explores how these ongoing and emerging trends and increased regulatory scrutiny across the MA program—the good, the bad, and the uncertain–can and likely will affect how stakeholders build effective safeguards.

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Combating healthcare FWA remains a top bipartisan enforcement priority. As the MA program grows, so does the federal government’s scrutiny of MAOs and downstream providers alike.

07/30/2026

Covered entities (CEs) enrolled in the federal 340B drug pricing program approach inappropriate drug use and drug diversion differently. CEs’ primary focus is about regulation compliance and achieving congressional goals. This article by Simon Tse discusses how pharmacists can help prevent inappropriate drug use and drug diversion and the impacts of those issues on 340B CEs.

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This article helps shed light on pharmacists’ roles in preventing inappropriate drug use and drug diversion and impacts on 340B CEs.

07/28/2026

Save the date and get ready for even more fun!

We are so excited to bring back four of our exciting conferences and institutes this upcoming bar year and we hope to see you there!

National Managed Care Institute
November 12-13, 2026 | Bass Berry & Sims, Nashville, TN

Washington Health Policy Summit
December 7-8, 2026 | The Ritz-Carlton, Washington, DC

Emerging Issues in Healthcare Law Conference
March 31-April 3, 2027 | Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, Tucson, AZ

Healthcare Delivery & Innovation Conference (NEW DATE!)
May 13-14, 2027 | Chicago, IL

For more information on registration and all these conferences have to offer, go to ambar.org/hlsevents

07/27/2026

As insurers move quickly to integrate AI into their business functions, regulators are moving just as quickly to establish guardrails, and the legal landscape is shifting fast. For attorneys advising health insurers or working in-house at health plans, understanding where the regulatory lines are being drawn is important. In this eSource article, Kairvi Tijoriwala looks at what some states are doing in health insurance AI regulation and where this area may be headed.

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With every industry racing to incorporate AI into their business models, health plans and insurers are doing the same. AI-driven systems are emerging as vital tools to address challenges faced by insurers and increase efficiencies.

07/23/2026

New Episode of Voices in Health Law out now!

This special discussion includes representatives from the Health Law Section, Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Council, Law Student Division, Senior Lawyers Division, and Young Lawyers Division. The roundtable discussion has panelists reflecting on all of their professional (some personal) transitions and the emotional levels they encountered through each transition.

Listen Now: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/health_law/resources/podcast/